Manufacturer: Rolex Year: Circa 1990 Reference No: 18238 Movement No: 5'158'160 Case No: E372891 Model Name: Day-Date Material: 18K yellow gold Calibre: Automatic, cal. 3155, 31 jewels Bracelet/Strap: 18K yellow gold Rolex President bracelet stamped "55B" to the end links, max length 175mm Clasp/Buckle: 18K yellow gold concealed Rolex deployant clasp stamped "8385" Dimensions: 36mm Diameter Signed: Case, dial, movement and clasp signed Accessories: Accompanied by Rolex product literature, presentation box and outer packaging
Catalogue Essay
Ever glamorous and luxurious, the Day-Date model delights with its myriad of dial, bracelet, bezel and gold-finished designs. Originally intended as Rolex's "luxury proposition" and made exclusively in precious metals, over the time the firm has experimented wildly with the models, adorning it with materials such as rubellite, blood stone, coral and even fossil, beyond gemstones.
This rare variant of reference 18238 is fitted with a dial displaying a charming champagne sunburst finish, and furthermore fitted with ruby-set hour markers and diamond-set minute divisions, classifying it as one of the ultimate luxury pieces produced by Rolex in the 1990s, a true apogee for the collector of high end and bejeweled timepieces.
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.
