818
Rolex
Ref. 1803
Day-Date
A very rare yellow gold calendar wristwatch with center seconds, turquoise lacquer ‘Stella’ dial, mesh bracelet, guarantee and presentation box
- Estimate
- HK$96,000 - 192,000$12,000 - 24,000
HK$237,500
Lot Details
- Manufacturer
- Rolex
- Year
- Circa 1971
- Reference No
- 1803
- Movement No
- DD407910
- Case No
- 2’771’762
- Model Name
- Day-Date
- Material
- 18k yellow gold
- Calibre
- Automatic, 1556, 26 jewels
- Bracelet/Strap
- 18k yellow gold <em>Rolex </em>mesh bracelet, 195 mm. maximum length
- Clasp/Buckle
- 18k yellow gold<em> Rolex </em>folding deployant clasp stamped 3.71
- Dimensions
- 36 mm. diameter
- Signed
- <em>Case, dial and movement signed </em>
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
It is widely acknowledged among Rolex scholars and collectors, that the Day-Date is the most varied, unusual and creative model the firm has ever produced. The Day-Date was Rolex’s first model to display separate day and date apertures. Since the model’s official launch in 1956, the Day-Date has seen a multitude of watch design variations.
Cased in yellow gold, pink gold, white gold or platinum, the Day-Date has been fitted with a plethora of dials, ranging from those set in delicate hard stone, to ones heavily embellished with diamonds. The firm has designed a series of special bracelets on top of the iconic President style, such as the ‘tile-link’, Milanese, ‘Octopussy’, brick-link textured bracelet and more.
John Goldberger's Opinion
I am attracted by the clean, simple geometric lines of the Day-Date’s which balance very well with its different eye catching variations.The present Day-Date, fitted with a turquoise colored ‘Stella’ dial and yellow gold mesh bracelet, really embodies the Rolex philosophy of merging aesthetics with practical function. Beyond telling the ‘Day’ and ‘Date’, this watch features a lacquer dial that is colorful and eye catching.
The original bracelet, designed with an unusual mesh pattern, is very thick and of stupendous quality, and stamped for the third quarter of 1971. This case is unpolished, full in proportions with sharp finishes throughout. It carries a deep hallmark to the back of the lug.
Cased in yellow gold, pink gold, white gold or platinum, the Day-Date has been fitted with a plethora of dials, ranging from those set in delicate hard stone, to ones heavily embellished with diamonds. The firm has designed a series of special bracelets on top of the iconic President style, such as the ‘tile-link’, Milanese, ‘Octopussy’, brick-link textured bracelet and more.
John Goldberger's Opinion
I am attracted by the clean, simple geometric lines of the Day-Date’s which balance very well with its different eye catching variations.The present Day-Date, fitted with a turquoise colored ‘Stella’ dial and yellow gold mesh bracelet, really embodies the Rolex philosophy of merging aesthetics with practical function. Beyond telling the ‘Day’ and ‘Date’, this watch features a lacquer dial that is colorful and eye catching.
The original bracelet, designed with an unusual mesh pattern, is very thick and of stupendous quality, and stamped for the third quarter of 1971. This case is unpolished, full in proportions with sharp finishes throughout. It carries a deep hallmark to the back of the lug.
Literature
Rolex
Swiss | 1905Founded 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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