Rolex - The Geneva Watch Auction: XIII Geneva Saturday, May 8, 2021 | Phillips
  • Manufacturer: Rolex
    Year: Circa 1990
    Reference No: 18238
    Movement No: 5'562'828
    Case No: E296163
    Model Name: Day-Date
    Material: 18K yellow gold, diamonds and sapphires
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. 3155, 31 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: Leather
    Clasp/Buckle: Gold plated Rolex buckle
    Dimensions: 36mm Diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, movement and buckle signed
    Accessories: Accompanied by Rolex presentation box and outer packaging.

  • Catalogue Essay

    Ever glamorous and luxurious, the Day-Date model delights with its myriad of dial, bracelet, bezel and gold-finished designs. The firm has elevated its Day-Date models with materials such as rubellite, blood stone, coral, and even fossil, providing an unusual design twist to the iconic model.

    This rare variant of reference 18238 is fitted with a dial displaying beautiful sapphire baguette-set numerals and champagne tone. It is furthermore preserved in excellent and impressive condition. The case has probably never seen polishing throughout its lifetime, and the dial displays luminous dots that are round and intact, having aged with warm patina.

  • Artist Biography

    Rolex

    Swiss • 1905

    Founded 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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Ref. 18238
A highly rare and attractive yellow gold, diamond and sapphire-set calendar wristwatch with center seconds and presentation box

Circa 1990
36mm Diameter
Case, dial, movement and buckle signed

Estimate
CHF15,000 - 25,000 
€13,600-22,700
$16,300-27,200

Sold for CHF21,420

Contact Specialist

Alexandre Ghotbi
Head of Watches, Continental Europe and the Middle East

41 79 637 1724
aghotbi@phillips.com

 

 

The Geneva Watch Auction: XIII

Geneva Auction 8 - 9 May 2021