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

Create your first list.

Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.

  • Condition Report

  • Manufacturer: Rolex
    Year: Circa 1954
    Reference No: 6352 inside caseback also engraved 6350
    Case No: 28'524
    Model Name: Oyster Perpetual
    Material: Stainless steel
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. A296, 18 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: Stainless steel Wandayke expandable bracelet, max length (unexpanded) 195mm
    Clasp/Buckle: Stainless steel Wanadyke deployant clasp stamped "83837"
    Dimensions: 35mm Diameter
    Signed: Case, dial and movement signed; clasp signed by bracelet maker

  • Catalogue Essay

    The Rolex 6352 features both “Pre-Explorer” and “Explorer” dials, as Rolex used this model as an experimental palette for testing the new branding. “Explorer” dials first appeared in 1953 and are most commonly seen on the reference 6350.

    The reference 6352, on the other hand, is most often seen with a white honeycomb dial or a smooth black dial. Hardly ever seen is the present combination – with a black honeycomb dial.

    The present example of a 6352 is especially well preserved, but also stands out with its rare dial: a depth rating (50m / 185ft) is indicated below the brand name at 12 o’clock – a highly unusual designation found on few Rolex watches made during the early 1950s.

    During these formative years for the brand, Rolex experimented with many different dial and case configurations, marking the development and refinement of their first “tool” watches. The caseback features two reference numbers, one marked 6350 with a strikethrough, and a second reference number engraved 6352 .

    The dial has been preserved in excellent condition and is sure to impress even the most discerning of Rolex scholars and enthusiasts.

  • 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

92

Ref. 6352 inside caseback also engraved 6350
An incredibly attractive, scarce and well-preserved stainless steel wristwatch with black honeycomb dial, luminous dots and bracelet

Circa 1954
35mm Diameter
Case, dial and movement signed; clasp signed by bracelet maker

Estimate
CHF20,000 - 40,000 
€20,400-40,900
$21,900-43,700

Sold for CHF40,640

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