Rolex - The Geneva Watch Auction: XVI Geneva Saturday, November 5, 2022 | Phillips

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  • Manufacturer: Rolex
    Year: Circa 1967
    Reference No: 1803
    Movement No: DD32559
    Case No: 1'596'120
    Model Name: Day-Date
    Material: 18K white gold
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. 1556, 26 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: 18K white gold Rolex president bracelet stamped "53" to the endlinks, max length 190mm
    Clasp/Buckle: 18K white gold Rolex deployant clasp stamped "2 67"
    Dimensions: 36mm Diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed
    Accessories: Accompanied by Rolex punched undated and unstamped Guarantee booklet, COSC certificate dated January 16, 1967, italian instruction booklet, numbers and price labels, fitted presentation box and outer packaging.

  • Catalogue Essay

    Rolex’s Day-Date is one of the most recognisable wristwatches today, and over the course of its 60-year history has been realized in all metal types and with different dial styles.

    Originally intended as Rolex’s “luxury proposition” (and indeed originally available exclusively in precious metal, with few prototypes in steel known), it has evolved to incarnate in the mind of nearly every watch enthusiast the conjunction of power, elegance, precision, luxury, exclusivity and mechanical perfection Rolex is famous for.

    The present example is presented in excellent condition and complete of all its original documents, including both COSC certification and Guarantee. As expected from a watch bearing Italian calendar discs, the piece was apparently sold in Italy, with both Guarantee and instruction booklet written in Italian. Finally, even the original tiny paper labels bearing movement and case number one, and the price (706’000 Italian lire) are present. A rare gem for the completionism-inclined collector.

  • 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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217

Ref. 1803
A rare and well-preserved white gold automatic wristwatch with center seconds, day, date, bracelet, Italian calendar, COSC certification, Guarantee and box

Circa 1967
36mm Diameter
Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed

Estimate
CHF15,000 - 30,000 
€15,400-30,900
$15,000-30,000

Sold for CHF25,200

Contact Specialist

Alexandre Ghotbi
Head of Watches, Continental Europe and the Middle East
+41 22 317 81 81
AGhotbi@phillips.com
 

Tiffany To
Head of Sale, Geneva
+41 22 317 96 63
TiffanyTo@phillips.com

The Geneva Watch Auction: XVI

Geneva Auction 5 - 6 November 2022