Manufacturer: Rolex Year: Circa 1971 Reference No: 6265 inside case back stamped 6262 Case No: 3'055'568 Model Name: Oyster Cosmograph Material: Stainless steel Calibre: Manual, cal. 727, 17 jewels Bracelet/Strap: Stainless steel Rolex C&I bracelet, max length 195mm Clasp/Buckle: Stainless steel Rolex deployant clasp Dimensions: 37mm Diameter Signed: Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed
Catalogue Essay
Launched in approximately 1969, reference 6265 was produced alongside its sibling reference 6263. Thanks to improvements to the screw down pushers and crown, the chronograph wristwatch was now water resistant and featured an "Oyster" designation printed on the dial.
Displaying a dial that has toned down to a rich tobacco tone, this reference 6265 is preserved in excellent condition. While each subsidiary register has aged slightly differently, it gives the watch a very charismatic, singular and unmistakably honest appearance. Still retaining its original Mk 2 pushers, the case is crisp and sharp. As with early generation reference 6265s, the inside case back displays 6262 as Rolex used leftover casebacks from earlier Cosmographs.
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.