1028
Rolex
Ref. 16610
Submariner, "COMEX"
A highly attractive and rare stainless steel wristwatch with date, sweep center seconds, bracelet, warranty and box, made for COMEX
- Estimate
- HK$470,000 - 780,000€51,900 - 86,200$60,300 - 100,000
HK$750,000
Lot Details
- Manufacturer
- Rolex
- Year
- Circa 1997
- Reference No
- 16610
- Movement No
- 7’699’033
- Case No
- U100’158, repeated on the inner caseback
- Model Name
- Submariner, "COMEX"
- Material
- Stainless steel
- Calibre
- Automatic, cal. 3135, 31 jewels
- Bracelet/Strap
- Stainless steel Rolex Oyster bracelet stamped 93150, endlinks stamped 501B, max length 190 mm
- Clasp/Buckle
- Stainless steel Rolex Oyster deployant clasp stamped 93150 and T2
- Dimensions
- 40 mm diameter
- Signed
- Case, dial, bracelet and movement signed
- Accessories
- Accompanied with warranty punched with matching serial number, service guarantee dated April 3, 2018, Rolex green leather fitted presentation box, original Rolex hang tags, Rolex anchor accessory, product literature and outer packaging
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
Of all the Submariner editions, the COMEX models retain a superior place in the hearts of Rolex collectors. From around 1989 to 1997, approximately 250 examples of the 16610 model were supplied to COMEX (or Compagnie Maritime d'Expertisesa), a company specializing in engineering and deep diving operations, featuring the COMEX logo on the dial and engraved COMEX issue number to the back. These watches were usually issued to their specialist divers of the company.
In 1997, the COMEX company was sold and the longstanding policy of using Rolex watches for their divers was discontinued. Bearing the U serial, the present watch is likely one of the last examples of the COMEX 16610 model. The back is engraved with the issue number, in this instance 6471, preserved in similarly excellent condition. The COMEX offered here is part of the family of some of the rarest Submariner editions. Fresh to the market according to our research, the present watch will be a great addition to any collection.
In 1997, the COMEX company was sold and the longstanding policy of using Rolex watches for their divers was discontinued. Bearing the U serial, the present watch is likely one of the last examples of the COMEX 16610 model. The back is engraved with the issue number, in this instance 6471, preserved in similarly excellent condition. The COMEX offered here is part of the family of some of the rarest Submariner editions. Fresh to the market according to our research, the present watch will be a great addition to any collection.
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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