949
Rolex
Ref. 18038
Day-Date
A very fine and rare gold and diamond-set calendar wristwatch with sweep centre seconds, bracelet, dégradé dial, guarantee and box
- Estimate
- HK$100,000 - 150,000€10,900 - 16,300$12,500 - 18,000
Lot Details
- Manufacturer
- Rolex
- Year
- Circa 1987
- Reference No
- 18038
- Case No
- R453716
- Model Name
- Day-Date
- Material
- 18k gold and diamond-set
- Calibre
- Automatic, cal. 3055, 27 jewels
- Bracelet/Strap
- 18k gold <em>Rolex President </em>bracelet, max. length 180mm
- Clasp/Buckle
- 18k gold <em>Rolex </em>concealed deployant clasp
- Dimensions
- 36mm diameter
- Signed
- <em>Case, dial and mvoement signed</em>
- Accessories
- With <em>Rolex </em>Attestation de Chronomètre Officiel dated 10 June 1988, fitted presentation box and outer packaging.
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
It was in the 1970s that Rolex introduced dials with vibrant colours at the centres fading to a much darker tone towards the edges. With their bold colour, attention is first drawn to the centre of each dial. This varying tone earns the nickname 'dégradé' or 'vignette' dial. The present Day-Date reference 18038 is fitted with a brown 'dégradé' dial that is further enhanced with diamond-set numerals and has been retained in close to new condition.
Literature
Rolex
Swiss | 1905Founded in 1905 England by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis as Wilsdorf & Davis, it soon became known as the Rolex Watch Company in 1915, moving its headquarters to Geneva in 1919. Like no other company, the success of the wristwatch can be attributed to many of Rolex's innovations that made them one of the most respected and well-known of all luxury brands. These innovations include their famous "Oyster" case — the world's first water resistant and dustproof watch case, invented in 1926 — and their "Perpetual" — the first reliable self-winding movement for wristwatches launched in 1933. They would form the foundation for Rolex's Datejust and Day-Date, respectively introduced in 1945 and 1956, but also importantly for their sports watches, such as the Explorer, Submariner and GMT-Master launched in the mid-1950s.One of its most famous models is the Cosmograph Daytona. Launched in 1963, these chronographs are without any doubt amongst the most iconic and coveted of all collectible wristwatches. Other key collectible models include their most complicated vintage watches, including references 8171 and 6062 with triple calendar and moon phase, "Jean Claude Killy" triple date chronograph models and the Submariner, including early "big-crown" models and military-issued variants.
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