255Σ
Rolex
Ref. 5504 inside caseback stamped II.1958
Air-King
A highly rare and attractive stainless steel wristwatch displaying "Ten Year Safe Driver"
- Estimate
- CHF3,000 - 5,000€2,800 - 4,700$3,100 - 5,200
CHF10,625
Lot Details
- Manufacturer
- Rolex
- Year
- Circa 1958
- Reference No
- 5504 inside caseback stamped II.1958
- Movement No
- 29'425
- Case No
- 282'014
- Model Name
- Air-King
- Material
- Stainless steel
- Calibre
- Automatic, cal. 1530, 17 jewels
- Bracelet/Strap
- Original alligator Rolex strap
- Clasp/Buckle
- Stainless steel Rolex pin buckle
- Dimensions
- 35mm Diameter
- Signed
- Case, dial and movement signed, movement stamped ROW
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
The present Air-King most notably displays "Ten Year Safe Driver" along with an image of a hound at 6 o'clock. Extremely rare and unusual, it was given to drivers of Greyhound Lines, Inc. as thanks for long service and safe driving. An American-based company, Greyhound Lines, Inc. is a bus carrier serving over 3,800 destinations across North America. Interestingly, the movement is stamped ROW which is fitting, considering that Greyhound is an American company.
The watch is preserved in excellent condition with light patina on the dial, and crisp graphics. The case is preserved in equally good condition with sharp facets.
The watch is preserved in excellent condition with light patina on the dial, and crisp graphics. The case is preserved in equally good condition with sharp facets.
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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