Rolex - The Geneva Watch Auction: XIX featuring the Guido Mondani Collection Geneva Saturday, May 11, 2024 | Phillips

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  • Condition Report

  • Manufacturer: Rolex
    Year: Circa 1985
    Reference No: 6269
    Movement No: 16'438
    Case No: 8'912'024
    Model Name: Cosmograph
    Material: 18K yellow gold and diamonds
    Calibre: Manual, cal. 727, 17 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: Leather
    Clasp/Buckle: 18K yellow gold Rolex buckle
    Dimensions: 37mm Diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, movement and buckle signed
    Accessories: Accompanied by Rolex presentation box and outer packaging. Furthermore accompanied by a copy of Daytona Manual Winding by Guido Mondani Editore.
    Literature: The present watch is illustrated in Daytona Manual Winding by Guido Mondani Editore, pages 186 and 187.

  • Catalogue Essay

    Showcasing a bezel set with 44 brilliant diamonds and pavé dial with 240 diamonds, reference 6269 is among the most regal, glamorous and luxurious Cosmograph models ever made. Research shows that Rolex made no more than thirty pieces in total. It is considered a trophy watch for many collectors. The top of the lugs are sharp, demonstrating how little if any intervention the watch has seen throughout its lifetime.

    While today gem-set sports pieces are highly collectible and widely seen, these watches were only brought into the mainstream during the 2000s. In fact, these combinations of watchmaking and gem-setting have been recently rediscovered and are enjoying the popularity they truly deserve. However, only a few decades ago the market for bejewelled timepieces was a very different beast. Prior to that, gem-set sports watches were considered either a special order series, or one-off pieces. During the 1980s, Rolex adorned tool watches with precious gems for its most exclusive and demanding clientele, ranging from Sultans in the Middle East to industry titans. Rolex in particular excels in sourcing and setting gemstones. Alongside reference 6269 and its baguette diamond sibling reference 6270, the brand also developed a ruby, diamond and sapphire-set GMT-Master, known today as the “SARU”.

    While the concept of merging gemstones with sports watches may seem obvious today, it was at the time a completely daring and maverick idea. Rolex forever changed the way we perceive and understand a tool watch, paving the way for endless possibilities and developments, such as the “Leopard” or the mythical emerald-set automatic Daytona. At the time, references 6269 or 6270 were mainly made for and worn by men. One can only imagine the debonair and well-heeled gentleman for whom Rolex specially produced this watch.

    In fact, such a brave decision would probably not have been made by the company, if they had not been spurred by one of their most important - if not their most important ever - clients: His Highness Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said of Oman (1940-2020). It is under his specific request that the first two bejewelled Rolex sport references came to light. One, reference 6269, is distinguished by its brilliant-cut diamond bezel, diamond pavé dial and golden subsidiary counters. The other is the reference 6270 with a baguette-set bezel.

    The present reference 6269 is an extremely impressive example, with crisp and sharp finishes on the top of the lugs. The hallmarks beneath the lugs are visible and deep, as are the numbers between the lugs. The dial itself is dazzling and bright; it is set with brilliant diamonds, as well as sapphires in lieu of hour markers. Such gems hardly appear on the market, no less in such well-preserved condition.

  • 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

From the Guido Mondani Collection

13

Ref. 6269
An exceedingly exclusive and lavish diamond-set yellow gold chronograph wristwatch with sapphire-set numerals and presentation box

Circa 1985
37mm Diameter
Case, dial, movement and buckle signed

Estimate
CHF600,000 - 1,200,000 
€613,000-1,230,000
$656,000-1,310,000

Place Advance Bid
Contact Specialist

Alexandre Ghotbi
Deputy Chairman, Watches, Head of Watches, Europe, and Middle East

+41 79 637 17 24
AGhotbi@phillips.com

Tiffany To
Head of Sale, Geneva

+41 79 460 55 88
TiffanyTo@phillips.com

The Geneva Watch Auction: XIX featuring the Guido Mondani Collection

Geneva Auction 11 - 12 May 2024