As it was preeminently designed for sportsmen, the main requisite of the Daytona was high legibility. Nevertheless, Rolex produced a series of “exotic” dials featuring a more flamboyant look, with a contrasting outer track, red fifth of a second divisions (at least on early examples) and square numerals on the subsidiary counters. While aesthetically extremely appealing, the legibility was not the strongest suit of this iteration. It was in fact poorly received by the market and soon discontinued at the beginning of the 1970s. However, the model happens to have been gifted to famed actor Paul Newman by his wife Joanne Woodward. Newman wore it consistently over the following ten years, which later prompted Italian collectors to nickname the model indeed “Paul Newman”.

Now considered as one of the most important Rolex Daytona iterations in virtue of its striking good looks and rarity, Paul Newman pieces are arguably the most coveted and desired vintage sports watches of all time.

The present example was recently re-discovered in Italy, after having spent the last 25 years in the safety of a bank vault in Milano. It is offered in extremely honest condition, impressing the beholder with its well preserved dial fully retaining original luminous accents and with absolutely intact graphics. Given the amount of interest for this model in the market, such discoveries are destined to become increasingly rare, making this an unmissable opportunity for collectors of important vintage sport’s timepieces.