It is commonly accepted that Rolex only produced manual winding Cosmographs in yellow gold with either a champagne dial with black registers or black dial with champagne registers, it was unfathomable to many that Rolex would ever deviate from this modus operandi.

The present Daytona changes scholarship in this field. Similar to the well documented Cosmograph “Albino” in steel with full silver dial (doing without the black registers) the dial of the present yellow gold reference 6265 shines in its full champagne glory doing without black subdials.

Unlike prototype dials that were subsequently mounted onto watches the dial of the present example is signed and has feet, meaning it was made to be fitted into a watch.

This theory is furthermore confirmed by a letter dated 28 Oct 2008 from Rolex Germany, where the watch was sent for servicing. The letter states “we can confirm that the watch corresponds to the above data at this time”, the “above data” being a description of the watch with its serial number and the champagne dial (“Champagner K. gelb”) making this watch utterly unique and the only one we have seen in this configuration.

The letter also indicates that the 2 chronograph pushers are different.

According to the consignor the watch was bought in the late 1990s/early 2000s from the original owner, a lawyer in the Dortmund (Germany) who had bought it from Rüschenbeck, the Rolex authorized dealer in Dortmund.

The present scholarship changing timepiece is monumental in its discovery and collectability