Rolex - The Hong Kong Watch Auction: XIX Hong Kong Saturday, November 23, 2024 | Phillips
  • Manufacturer: Rolex
    Year: Circa 1974
    Reference No: 1803, repeated inside caseback
    Movement No: DD’618’060
    Case No: 3’852’659
    Model Name: Day-Date “Desert Rose”
    Material: 18K pink gold
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. 1555, 26 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: 18K pink gold Rolex President bracelet, endlinks stamped “53”, max length 180mm
    Clasp/Buckle: 18K pink gold Rolex deployant clasp
    Dimensions: 36mm diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, movement, bracelet and clasp signed
    Provenance: Phillips, Geneva Watch Auction: TWO on 7 & 8 November 2015, lot 219
    Literature: The present watch is described and illustrated in Day Date: The Presidential Rolex by Pucci Papaleo Editore, page 196-197

  • Provenance

    Phillips, Geneva Watch Auction: TWO on 7 & 8 November 2015, lot 219

  • Catalogue Essay

    Throughout the extensive history of the Rolex Day-Date, certain early examples were manufactured for individual markets, with the present watch originally made for the Middle Eastern market in 1974. Rolex has maintained the Day-Date collection as its most prestigious line over the years, exclusively encasing it in precious metals, aside from some prototype pieces.

    Pink gold Day-Dates are particularly rare, especially following the discontinuation of the reference 1803 in the late 1970s. It wasn't until the early 2000s that new 6-digit reference Day-Dates began to feature luxurious pink gold again. The present reference 1803 in pink gold is fitted with a silvered dial, complemented by applied pink gold Arabic numeral indexes and pink gold hands. Both apertures for the day and date are also in Arabic, with all elements remaining in excellent overall condition.

    Arabic dials continue to be highly sought after, particularly as this exclusive feature is found in select platinum Day-Date and Daytona references. This uncommon Arabic Day-Date is especially coveted among vintage Rolex collectors, and this extravagant “Desert Rose” is detailed in Day Date: The Presidential Rolex by Pucci Papaleo. It was first auctioned in 2015 and has remained in a private collection since then. We are pleased to present this watch again, nine years later, as it remains an important example in the model’s history.

  • 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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879

Ref. 1803, repeated inside caseback
A well-preserved, highly rare and attractive pink gold wristwatch with center seconds, Arabic day, date, Eastern Arabic numerals and bracelet

Circa 1974
36mm diameter
Case, dial, movement, bracelet and clasp signed

Estimate
HK$380,000 - 750,000 
€44,500-87,800
$48,700-96,200

Sold for HK$965,200

Contact Specialist

Thomas Perazzi
Head of Watches, Asia
+852 2318 2030
WatchesHK@phillips.com
 

Gertrude Wong
Head of Sale, Hong Kong
+852 2318 2045
gertrudewong@phillips.com
 

The Hong Kong Watch Auction: XIX

Hong Kong Auction 23 - 24 November 2024