198
Rolex
Ref. 6613
Day-Date
An outstandingly beautiful, important and hardly-ever-seen platinum automatic wristwatch with center seconds, eastern Arabic day and date, circular satin-finished dial and big logo bracelet
- Estimate
- CHF100,000 - 200,000€108,000 - 215,000$122,000 - 245,000
CHF425,450
Lot Details
- Manufacturer
- Rolex
- Year
- 1959
- Reference No
- 6613
- Movement No
- DD N 884631
- Case No
- 471'401
- Model Name
- Day-Date
- Material
- Platinum
- Calibre
- Automatic, cal. 1055, 25 jewels
- Bracelet/Strap
- Platinum Rolex bracelet, max length 200mm
- Clasp/Buckle
- Platinum Rolex "Big Logo" clasp stamped "1 60"
- Dimensions
- 36mm diameter
- Signed
- Case, dial, movement and clasp signed
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
The Day-Date reference 6613 is incredibly rare. It is the most luxurious, diamond-set bezel iteration of the “first generation” of day-date, represented also by reference 6612 (smooth bezel) and 6611 (ribbed bezel).
A search spanning all times and all auction houses will come up with only a handful of such pieces. Here is a breakdown of the examples we could track down:
Unknown case number - later T Swiss T dial with English calendar, diamond markers and luminous accents. (This example bears a smooth bezel) - Antiquorum 2004
Case no. 416’988 - silvered dial signed by “Duaÿ” with English calendar and diamond markers - Phillips 2016
Case no. 471’401 - the present watch - silvered dial with circular satin finish, Eastern Arabic calendar and diamond markers
Case no. 481'560 - silvered matte dial with Eastern Arabic calendar and numerals, and luminous accents - Christie's 2005
Case no. 481’561 - silvered dial with circular satin finish, English calendar, diamond markers and luminous accents - Antiquorum 2021
Case no. 483’549 - later sigma dial with English calendar and diamond markers - Antiquorum 2018
Thus, it is apparent that the present piece presents traits that might categorize this watch - according to some collectors - as the most desirable of this restricted bunch. Not only is it one of two examples with the Eastern Arabic calendar, but it furthermore sports one of the most elusive dial finishes that can be found on a Day-Date: the circular satin finish. Among the most notable, beyond the aforementioned 6613, one cannot avoid to mention the "Big Kahuna" 6612, sold by Phillips at the historical “Glamorous Day-Date” sale for the remarkable amount of 473’000 CHF in 2015.
A search spanning all times and all auction houses will come up with only a handful of such pieces. Here is a breakdown of the examples we could track down:
Unknown case number - later T Swiss T dial with English calendar, diamond markers and luminous accents. (This example bears a smooth bezel) - Antiquorum 2004
Case no. 416’988 - silvered dial signed by “Duaÿ” with English calendar and diamond markers - Phillips 2016
Case no. 471’401 - the present watch - silvered dial with circular satin finish, Eastern Arabic calendar and diamond markers
Case no. 481'560 - silvered matte dial with Eastern Arabic calendar and numerals, and luminous accents - Christie's 2005
Case no. 481’561 - silvered dial with circular satin finish, English calendar, diamond markers and luminous accents - Antiquorum 2021
Case no. 483’549 - later sigma dial with English calendar and diamond markers - Antiquorum 2018
Thus, it is apparent that the present piece presents traits that might categorize this watch - according to some collectors - as the most desirable of this restricted bunch. Not only is it one of two examples with the Eastern Arabic calendar, but it furthermore sports one of the most elusive dial finishes that can be found on a Day-Date: the circular satin finish. Among the most notable, beyond the aforementioned 6613, one cannot avoid to mention the "Big Kahuna" 6612, sold by Phillips at the historical “Glamorous Day-Date” sale for the remarkable amount of 473’000 CHF in 2015.
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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