Manufacturer: Rolex Year: 1981 Reference No: 1665 Movement No: D950’096 Case No: 6’655’091 Model Name: Sea-Dweller “Great White” Material: Stainless steel Calibre: Automatic, cal. 1570. 26 jewels Bracelet/Strap: Stainless steel Rolex Oyster bracelet stamped 93150, endlinks stamped 585, max length 200mm Clasp/Buckle: Stainless steel Rolex flip lock extendable deployant clasp, stamped 93150, VE Dimensions: 39.5mm Diameter Signed: Case, dial, movement, and clasp signed. Accessories: Accompanied by Rolex green leather presentation box, green numbered hang tag, red hang tag, anchor, product literature and outer packaging.
Catalogue Essay
In 1967 Rolex launched the Sea-Dweller model, which established a new standard in performance and technology, with an incredible depth rating of 2000 feet (610 meters), and the first ever helium escape valve (HEV). During the 1960s, most watches did not have the capacity to submerge into and re-emerge from great depths within diving chambers without breaking. The Helium Escape Valve allowed helium gas, which built up from the air mixture used in diving chambers, to be released during decompression. The earliest iterations were engraved with “Patent Pending Rolex Oyster Gas Escape Valve” on their case backs, which was later changed to “Rolex Patent Oyster” as seen on the present watch. In the late 1970s, Rolex ended its production for the Double Red Sea-Dweller featuring two lines of text in red on the dial and replaced it with the “Great White” dial, which no longer used red lines of text. The present example is fitted with a MK3 dial, distinguished by the closed “6” in “610” and the slope of the “f” in “ft”.
This present lot, preserved in stunning, crisp condition, is accompanied by product literature from the era, as well as the fitted presentation box and outer packaging. The Sea-Dweller is a sporty and versatile watch that is both highly collectible and suitable for daily wear.
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.
