Rolex - The Geneva Watch Auction: XIII Geneva Saturday, May 8, 2021 | Phillips

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  • Manufacturer: Rolex
    Year: Circa 1991
    Reference No: 18238 inside caseback stamped 18200
    Movement No: 6'209'891
    Case No: X'257'145
    Model Name: Day-Date
    Material: 18K yellow gold, ammonite and diamonds
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. 3155, 31 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: 18K yellow gold Rolex Oyster bracelet, endlinks stamped "55B", max length 180mm
    Clasp/Buckle: 18K yellow gold Rolex deployant clasp stamped "8385"
    Dimensions: 36mm Diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed
    Accessories: Accompanied by original Rolex International Service Guarantee dated December 09, 2020, Bucherer service papers and pouch.

  • Catalogue Essay

    Incredibly rare, this reference 18238 most notably displays a hard stone ammonite dial with diamond-set Arabic markers. One of the most unusual dial materials ever to be featured on a watch, this dial in made up of fossilized ammonites (a prehistorical mollusc). Consequently, no two dials are exactly the same in nature, giving each watch a distinctive and unique appearance.

    Rolex in particular excels in using hard stone and unusual materials. The manufacture has elevated its dress watches with materials such as rubellite, blood stone, coral, and a number of different fossil-bering stones, providing an unusual design twist to classic models.

    To the best of our knowledge, the consignor of the present watch upgraded his timepiece with the present dial during a service.

  • 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.

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This lot is offered without Reserve

36

Lot offered with No Reserve

Ref. 18238 inside caseback stamped 18200
A very attractive and fine yellow gold calendar wristwatch with sweep center seconds, ammonite dial, diamond-set Arabic numerals and bracelet

Circa 1991
36mm Diameter
Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed

Estimate
CHF12,000 - 18,000 
€10,900-16,300
$13,100-19,600

Sold for CHF32,760

Contact Specialist

Alexandre Ghotbi
Head of Watches, Continental Europe and the Middle East

41 79 637 1724
aghotbi@phillips.com

 

 

The Geneva Watch Auction: XIII

Geneva Auction 8 - 9 May 2021