60
Rolex
Ref. 18038
Day-Date
An eye catching and very well preserved yellow gold, diamond and emerald-set calendar wristwatch
- Estimate
- CHF15,000 - 30,000$15,000 - 30,000€15,400 - 30,900
CHF35,280
Lot Details
- Manufacturer
- Rolex
- Year
- Circa 1978
- Reference No
- 18038
- Movement No
- 0'132'471
- Case No
- 5'679'825
- Model Name
- Day-Date
- Material
- 18K yellow gold, diamonds and emeralds
- Calibre
- Automatic, cal. 3055, 27 jewels
- Bracelet/Strap
- Leather
- Clasp/Buckle
- 18K yellow gold Rolex pin buckle
- Dimensions
- 36mm Diameter
- Signed
- Case, dial, movement and buckle signed
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
Two elements immediately jump out when admiring the present Day-Date.
First the incredible visually arresting combination of champagne dial, diamond minute markers and baguette emeralds that give the watch an air of glamour and panache and secondly the impeccable state of preservation with a nice, thick and most probably unpolished case with deep crisp hallmarks and the presence of the caseback sticker.
Reference 18038 most notably features a sapphire crystal and an upgraded caliber 3055 that enabled a quick set date function. These were two upgrades from reference 1803, which was fitted with an acrylic crystal and did not allow the wearer to simply change the date by pulling out the crown half way.
The present watch is one among an exceedingly limited number of Day-Dates featuring emerald baguette numerals, such examples come to the market very rarely, and when they do, it is a notable occasion.
First the incredible visually arresting combination of champagne dial, diamond minute markers and baguette emeralds that give the watch an air of glamour and panache and secondly the impeccable state of preservation with a nice, thick and most probably unpolished case with deep crisp hallmarks and the presence of the caseback sticker.
Reference 18038 most notably features a sapphire crystal and an upgraded caliber 3055 that enabled a quick set date function. These were two upgrades from reference 1803, which was fitted with an acrylic crystal and did not allow the wearer to simply change the date by pulling out the crown half way.
The present watch is one among an exceedingly limited number of Day-Dates featuring emerald baguette numerals, such examples come to the market very rarely, and when they do, it is a notable occasion.
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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