Omega Seamaster 300M James Bond Edition with British Government Markings

The next James Bond movie to come out, No Time To Die, of course has a new watch associated with it. Ever since Pierce Brosnan took over as MI6 agent 007 the famous super spy has worn a watch made by Omega. Issued by said spy agency to Bond, the watch, as is the rest of Bond's kit, is the property of the British Government. 

I have been researching watches lately. The watches worn by James Bond are of course interesting for their association to Bond, but they are also some very good looking time pieces. Bond of course has good taste. 

I am also interested in more historically significant pieces. The Omega Speedmaster series that was used by NASA is particularly interesting to me, though I think I prefer the Rolex Daytona line for looks and features. 

All of that being said, I noticed a strange connection between the World War II era watches and the latest wrist fair of Mr. Bond. Below is an image of a Smith's branded watch issued to members of the Royal Air Force during the war. Notice the upward arrow mark at the bottom? That is called a "pheon" or "broad arrow".

This is a symbol marking property of the British Crown dating back possibly to the 14th century. It is often found on military equipment but not exclusively. This watch here is marked at property of the British Government (specifically the Ministry of Defense) by that pheon on the bottom of the watch face. 

Usually this symbol is stamped into military gear, but it can be painted as well. The object was to mark government property to discourage theft.

If you look at the Omega Seamaster watch shown above, you will notice the pheon is used there as well. This marks the watch as government property since it was issued to Bond. Of course if it is included in the watches sold to the public it wouldn't have the same meaning, but it is a nice touch of realism by either Omega or the producers of No Time To Die.

Of course I am an American and just learned about this symbol this afternoon, so if I am wrong please let me know.