Manufacturer: Rolex Year: Circa 2015 Reference No: 126660 Case No: V'843'173 Model Name: Sea-Dweller Deapsea Material: Stainless steel Calibre: Automatic, cal. 3235, 31 jewels Bracelet/Strap: Stainless steel Rolex Oyster bracelet, max length 210mm Clasp/Buckle: Stainless steel Rolex deployant clasp with extension Dimensions: 44mm Diameter Signed: Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed Accessories: Accompanied by Rolex box and product literature.
Catalogue Essay
Launched in 1967, the Sea-Dweller was the ultimate tool watch. Originally conceived for dive expeditions, the model was officially introduced for civilian use in 1967.
The present Sea-Dweller Deapsea is a more wearable version of the specially built Deepsea model that famously became the first watch to descend to a depth of more than 10,000 meters in the Mariana Trench, on an 2012 expedition sponsored by Rolex and the National Geographic Society and manned by filmmaker James Cameron.
Even though the present watch cannot resist the same depths as the model that went on the expedition, it still boasts an impressive 3,900 meter depth rating.
It features the Sea-Dweller’s signature Helium Escape Valve allowing helium gas, which built up underwater, to be released during decompression without the crystal popping off.
The rotating bezel is equipped with a Cerachrom insert made of extra-hard black ceramic. The numerals and indices on the bezels are molded in the ceramic and colored with platinum using a PVD process.
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.