Rolex - TOKI: Watch Auction Hong Kong Friday, November 22, 2024 | Phillips
  • Manufacturer: Rolex
    Year: Circa 1992
    Reference No: 14270
    Movement No: 4’518’438
    Case No: N286’172
    Model Name: Explorer, “Blackout”
    Material: Stainless steel
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. 3000, 27 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: Stainless steel Rolex Oyster bracelet stamped “78360”, endlinks “558B”, max length 190mm
    Clasp/Buckle: Stainless steel Rolex Oyster deployant clasp stamped “R3”
    Dimensions: 36mm diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, movement, bracelet and clasp signed
    Accessories: Accompanied by Rolex Japan guarantee stamped Takashiyama Department store Yokohama Japan dated 19th April 1994, green leather holder, 1994-1995 calendar card, instruction manual, hang tag, fitted presentation box and outer packaging.

  • Catalogue Essay

    The Explorer ref. 14270 holds a very special place of Asian pop-culture in the late 90s and early 2000s. Takuya Kimura, actor and singer of boy-band SMAP, was an international sensation across Asia which grew to immense popularity with his iconic TV show Love Generation. Kimura being a style icon and watch enthusiast wore the Rolex explorer ref. 14270 throughout the show, thus propelled the model to new heights to become the “IT” watch during the era.

    A complete “Blackout” with its Japanese guarantee, accessories and even its original priced hang tag, the caseback still retains its factory Japanese import sticker.

  • 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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Lot offered with No Reserve

Ref. 14270
A well-preserved stainless steel wristwatch with center seconds, “blackout” indexes, bracelet, guarantee and presentation box

Circa 1992
36mm diameter
Case, dial, movement, bracelet and clasp signed

Estimate
HK$78,000 - 120,000 
€9,200-14,100
$10,000-15,400

Sold for HK$152,400

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

TOKI: Watch Auction

Hong Kong Auction 22 November