Well-known by passionate collectors today, the Tudor brand was the brain child of Hans Wildorf and his concept to produce moderately priced watches, which had the same dependability as his famed and more expensive Rolex timepieces. First established in 1926, the brand came in to its own following World War II with the creation of Montres Tudor SA. In 1952, Tudor released the Oyster Prince, a wristwatch featuring both a waterproof oyster case and self-winding movement. Similar to it Rolex counterparts, these watches were tool watches that were durable and reliable no matter the environment. The two brands worked in parallel with Tudor releasing their Submariner reference 7922 in 1954 as their first dive watch, while Rolex released the reference 6200 the same year at Basel. These tool watches have become collector favourites and as the secondary market for quality Rolex watches has grown, so too has the collectability of Tudor timepieces.

Tudor’s references 7922, 7923 and 7924 are amongst the rarest of the brand’s Submariner line and the reference 7923 is probably the rarest and unique amongst all. The reference 7923 was produced in the mid-1950s, however unlike other Rolex and Tudor watches of this period, the model featured a manual wound movement, the caliber 1182. The no crown case of these early models featured a Brevet + small crown, and without the automatic movement, the case was slim with flat back. Few of these models have appeared in the market and when they do they garner much attention.

The present watch is an extraordinarily rare example featuring a gilt dial with red depth markings. The reference 7923 featured gilt dials both with and without the red depth rating. This dial configuration was so unusual Tudor choose it for their Only Watch Auction timepiece sold by Phillips in 2015 for 375,000CHF, as a modern reinterpretation of the now iconic tool watch. This referenced 7923 is an honest timepiece in excellent condition. The case retains strong proportions and while it has been lightly polished during past servicing, the lug bevels are present, and the engraved case and reference number to the back remain strong. The dial is original with lume that has turned a warm brown and now oxidised and reacts with blue light and strongly reacts under a Geiger counter. The original no minute marking bezel completes the watch.

Today’s collectors seek watches that are both rare and provide history and insight in to the world of horology and particular brands. Originally thought to be a prototype due to their rarity, research has found them in Rolex/Tudor service catalogues along with the references 7922 and 6536/1. This is a wonderful opportunity to own a very early piece of Tudor history.