...A Fascinating New Rolex Mystery...
Is This The First & Only
Transparent Dial Rolex?
ROLEX EXTRA PRIMA
Every time I think maybe I have seen it all in the world of Rolex, I seem to realize I am far from achieving such a lofty goal. A reader named Christophe who is a vintage Rolex watch collector wrote-in asking if I might have any insight to share on a most unusual and highly mysterious vintage Rolex in his collection, and I almost fell out of my chair when I saw this potentially ultra-rare gem. Is this a prototype, or a one-off, or customized Rolex? If so, was it customized by Rolex, or aftermarket, by a cunning watchmaker at Artisans de Genève, just to mess with everybody?
I don't want to get too excited about this discovery as I am not able to confirm if all the details are legit, but I have began reaching out to my key fellow Rolex horological experts for their input. Once I have concluded, I will update this story, but all I can say is if this is completely original, it would potentially be a complete next-level game changer...
For clarity sake, many, many brands have famously made what are known as skeleton watches, whereby they lack a dial that hides or covers the movement, but instead showcases the movement elements and parts in place of the dial. Also, watches that expose the movement with a clear crystal on the back are typically referred to as "exhibition casebooks" as they showcase the beauty and technical sophistication of the watch movement. Historically, Rolex was thought to have NEVER produced such a watch, but this beauty appears to completely refute that notion and instead make it appear as if Rolex was actual an early pioneer of incorporating such technology!!!
Also, this apparently unique Rolex prototype features another most unusual characteristic, and that is the fact the 5 minute baton markers as as well as the minute track are painted on the back of the crystal in red, which adds yet another unusual and beautiful element. I showed this discovery to Nick Gould, and as usual, he made an astute observation and quipped, "Clearly this is a Rolex Reference 1073 or similar, and maybe the crystal exhibition front and back that showcases the raw movement was for time testing? I am confident the movement is authentic..."
Just for frame-of-reference, the Rolex pictured below was a very early Rolex Oyster, made in 1926 and notice it features skinny lugs connected to a similar cushion case that appear to have been soldiered on. The model above appears to be similar to models from around 1928, when Rolex updated the Oyster with thicker machined lugs.
One More Thang...
Another interesting feature is this watch also has an exhibition casebook, which showcases the manually wound Rolex Extra Prima movement, which was an extremely precise and accurate timekeeper back in the 1920s.
My best guess is this Rolex featured a case made out of silver, and the movement is simply gorgeous.
So if this discovery is authentic, what would it mean? Rolex, to the best of my knowledge only ever made one other model in the past which featured an exhibition casebook and that apparently was a sales model made exclusively for Rolex sales representatives to show customers how the Rolex automatic perpetual movement worked.
The Rolex Oyster Perpetual
The First Waterproof Self-Winding Watch
The Development of the Rolex Oyster was an incredible horological achievement, but the challenge was that it made it more difficult to manually wind the watch because the user had to unscrew it first, then wind it, then re-screw the Oyster crown.
In 1931 Rolex patented the Perpetual rotor which automatically wound the watch, thus eliminating the need to ever wind it again! This not only made it more convenient but also more accurate because the watch would never stop so long as you wore it.
For those too young to remember, manual-wind wrist watches required you wind them daily which was an inconvenience for most people, although some people, like train conductors liked it ;-))))))
The Rolex Oyster Perpetual pictured above and below was made in 1931 and Rolex put an exhibition caseback on it to easily show potential consumers how it worked. As you can see in the photo below there is a rotor that says "Rolex Auto Rotor" which automatically spins clockwise and/or counter-clockwise just from the movement of the wearers wrist and "Automatically" wound the mainspring. In other words, even the slightest movement of the wrist (using gravity) will wind the watch, thus keeping the mainspring wound at optimum tension.
Rolex based the design of their perpetual rotor system on one Abraham Louis Perelet developed in 1770, and in the years before Rolex perfected their methodology, there was a company named Harwood that created a self-winding rotor system that only moved clockwise, but had many challenges that stopped it from becoming the industry standard.
By creating an auto-winding or self-winding wristwatch, Rolex once again revolutionized the wristwatch–and again, Rolex was not the first to explore creating a self-winding wristwatch, but Hans Wilsdorf and Rolex were the first to perfect it, patent, and bring it successfully to market, and most importantly sell it in large quantities around earth.
The patent on the Rolex perpetual eventually ran out in 1948 and everybody was free to develop their own automatic rotor systems that used gravity to wind their movements–and they did...
A Very Special Rolex Daytona
The First Rolex with an Exhibition Caseback
On June 6, 2023, Rolex surprised the entire watch world when they showcased a new special edition Daytona dubbed the Le Mans, which celebrated the 100th Anniversary of the 24 hours of Le Mans auto race, and collectors freaked out as it featured retro subdials reminiscent of the Paul Neman Daytona as seen below. A unique feature of this white gold Daytona is on its ceramic bezel it features a red 100 on the tachometer.
Rolex articulated this beautifully this notion when they said:
"Standing out against the bright black dial are intense white counters whose graphic design is inspired by a traditional Rolex dial. The Oyster case is fitted with a transparent back and an Oyster bracelet. This original timepiece is equipped with an exclusive movement, calibre 4132, which allows the hours of the chronograph function to be counted over twenty-four hours – another nod to the race – instead of the model’s usual twelve."
Perhaps the most extraordinary feature of this new model is it featured an exhibition case back, which was a first for Rolex. That's right, it only took Rolex 117 years to formally launch a model that featured an exhibition caseback, which seems strange to many people as Rolex movements have historically been such works of art, in-and-of-themselves...
Rolex articulated it beautifully and said:
"This movement incorporates the Chronergy escapement, Paraflex shock absorbers, and bridges decorated with Rolex Côtes de Genève. The cut-out oscillating weight in 18 kt yellow gold is fitted with an optimized ball bearing. Like all Rolex watches, this special version of the Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona carries the Superlative Chronometer certification, which ensures excellent performance on the wrist."
Once I learn more about this potentially amazing discovery, I will update this article.
