141
Rolex
Ref. 18946, further stamped "2286" inside the caseback
Day-Date Masterpiece
An extremely fine and very rare platinum and diamond-set automatic wristwatch with center seconds, date, day, bracelet, Guarantee and box
- Estimate
- CHF25,000 - 35,000€22,000 - 30,800$25,600 - 35,900
CHF37,500
Lot Details
- Manufacturer
- Rolex
- Year
- Circa 2003
- Reference No
- 18946, further stamped "2286" inside the caseback
- Case No
- K556994
- Model Name
- Day-Date Masterpiece
- Material
- Platinum
- Calibre
- Automatic, cal. 3155, 31 jewels
- Bracelet/Strap
- Platinum Rolex Pearlmaster bracelet, max length 205mm
- Clasp/Buckle
- Platinum Rolex deployant clasp
- Dimensions
- 39mm Diameter
- Signed
- Case, dial, movement and clasp signed
- Accessories
- Accompanied by Rolex guarantee stamped by Abu Dhabi retailer Khoory and dated March 26, 2003, product literature, calendar card for the years 2003 and 2004, green card holder and massive fitted green presentation box.
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
When it was originally launched 1956, the Day-Date was a somewhat unusual model for Rolex. The company’s production focusing more on professional timepieces such as the GMT, the Submariner and the Milgauss, all examples released around that time. The Day-Date was instead envisioned as a luxury watch - an ethos which survives intact to these days - and such a vocation was underlined by some subtle details, such as the luxurious President bracelet.
The present piece can be considered the culmination of this philosophy. Not only does it feature the most noble case metal of them all - platinum - but furthermore both the indexes and the bezel as well are adorned with diamonds. Such a luxurious combination is however so well executed and the overall design so balanced that the watch does not appear excessive or encumbered in its design. It maintains a very distinguished elegance, the diamond-setting becoming a whimsical but organic element of the composition rather than a flamboyant and encumbering detail. A true "must-have" piece for the collector of Rolex wristwatches.
The present piece can be considered the culmination of this philosophy. Not only does it feature the most noble case metal of them all - platinum - but furthermore both the indexes and the bezel as well are adorned with diamonds. Such a luxurious combination is however so well executed and the overall design so balanced that the watch does not appear excessive or encumbered in its design. It maintains a very distinguished elegance, the diamond-setting becoming a whimsical but organic element of the composition rather than a flamboyant and encumbering detail. A true "must-have" piece for the collector of Rolex wristwatches.
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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