68
Rolex
Ref. 6239
Cosmograph Daytona "Jumbo Logo"
A fine and rare stainless steel chronograph wristwatch with "Jumbo" logo, bracelet and box
Full-Cataloguing
- Chronograph, running seconds at 9 o’clock
- Reference 6239 was very first Daytona model launched
- Unusual and appealing “Jumbo Logo” dial
Officially launched in 1963, reference 6239 is the very first of the 9 manual Daytona models. It is defined by the metal bezel (with tachymeter scale: its location on the bezel being what sets apart Daytonas from previous Rolex chronographs) and the vintage-inspired pump pushers (destined to be dropped in favor of screw-down pushers a few years later).
Especially in the early years of the model, Rolex experimented a lot with dial configurations. Most notably, early examples tend to feature the Daytona script at 12 o’clock, while later it will be moved to the usual 6 o’clock location. Furthermore, “double Swiss” dials are known as well as “underline” dials, “small Daytona” ones and the present “Jumbo Logo” dial.
While Daytona specimens with Rolex at 12 o’clock tend to feature a tiny font for the signature - smaller than the Rolex / Cosmograph lines - at times such as in this instance, the Daytona signature is markedly larger, so much so that it takes more space on the dial than the “Cosmograph” designation.
Beyond the intellectual intrigue of a rare dial variation, the entire aesthetic impact of the dial is enormously altered, with the large Daytona imparting a much more contemporary look to the watch compared to its “small Daytona” peers.
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.