Rolex - The Geneva Watch Auction: SEVEN Geneva Saturday, May 12, 2018 | Phillips

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  • Manufacturer: Rolex
    Year: Circa 1978
    Reference No: 1680
    Movement No: D532'684
    Case No: 5'429'380
    Model Name: Submariner
    Material: 18K yellow gold
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. 1570, 26 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: 18K yellow gold Rolex Oyster bracelet, max lenght 200mm plus diver's extension
    Clasp/Buckle: 18K yellow gold Rolex twinlock folding deployant clasp further stamped 3.71 plus diver's extension
    Dimensions: 39mm Diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed

  • Catalogue Essay

    The Rolex Submariner has become synonymous for a rugged “tool watch” originally made for divers but considered today as the perfect go-to versatile timepiece.

    Launched in 1967, reference 1680 was the first Submariner to feature a date. As a tool watch, the majority were made in stainless steel, with the first examples displaying the depth rating in meters first followed by the equivalent in feet. Furthermore, these models featured the name of the model, Submariner, in red leading collectors to nickname the model “Red Submariner”.

    It was also Rolex’s first divers’ watch to come in precious gold.

    The present watch with its all yellow gold livery, blue bezel and striking sunray pattern blue dial whose color goes from dark blue to purple depending on the angle of light is no more a tool watch but a timepiece made for the explorers of the urban jungle whose bespoke Japanese shoes alternatively tread the concrete pavements, the accelerator of a fast German car and lush hotel carpets in Hong Kong, Paris or Dubai.

  • Artist Biography

    Rolex

    Swiss • 1905

    Founded 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.

    View More Works

238

Ref. 1680
A fine and attractive yellow gold wristwatch with date, blue dial and bracelet

Circa 1978
39mm Diameter
Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed

Estimate
CHF20,000 - 40,000 
€17,100-34,300
$21,200-42,300

Sold for CHF40,000

Contact Specialist
Alexandre Ghotbi
Head of Sale
+41 22 317 81 81
aghotbi@phillips.com

The Geneva Watch Auction: SEVEN

Geneva Auction 12-13 May 2018