To the untrained eye it might just appear to be any old Rolex Submariner, however this one has just sold at Auction for a staggering £230,000. This new record was set on the 11th October 2017 at Lockdale Auctioneers, near Ipswich where bidders from all around the world had flown in for the auction. The watch was brought by an Italian collector after a bidding war which set a new UK record.

The watch has had a lucky life to say the least after falling off the original owners wrist and diving into a cement mixer a few years ago. Its a miracle its in the condition its in, not to mention the extremely rare, original Arabic Numerals on the dial. The dial is also called the “explorer dial” amongst watch enthusiasts, an ultra rare piece of Rolex history.

Over 100 people entered the Auction online and in house however nobody knew it would achieve 30times more than its original estimate.

To date, the highest bid ever placed on a watch is the stainless-steel Patek Philippe that achieved an eye-watering $11.1 million at the Phillips auction house in November. Patek Philippe only produced 281 of these vintage 1941 models, majority in gold. However only 4 were made in stainless steel.

Amongst the most collectable timepieces is the Rolex Daytona 6239, a rare, limited run produced from 1966 until the mid-1970s. The watch was only made famous by the actor Paul Newman who wore one daily in the 1970s. When they were first introduced they were not the most popular, in fact most dealers had difficulty selling them! Recent auctions have previously sold the Daytona 6239 for extremely high figures as in May an 18ct solid gold “Paul Newman” Daytona reached $3.7 million at Phillips in Geneva. A year prior the same auction house sold a stainless-steel version for $2 million, however these two watches were not owned by one the biggest actors of the 1970s.

Phillips auctioneers estimate that Newman’s stainless-steel Rolex Daytona watch will fetch more than $1 million, considering a standard Daytona 6239 achieved $2m its quite an under-estimate! Given its history and condition, vintage watch enthusiasts are predicting figures as high as $10 million! The auction will take place in New York October 26th.

To mark the 40 years of the Royal Oak, A.P have collaborated with jewellery designer Carolina Bucci and produced an ancient Florentine technique on the Ladies range. Carolina Bucci has said “We have had nothing added to the watch, nor subtracted anything– Just altered the surface of the Gold to make it sparkle whilst catching the light”

The process is rooted in ancient gold hammering, which was known as the Florentine technique. Beating the gold with a diamond tipped tool creates tiny indentations on the surface, giving a sparkle effect similar to that of precious stones, like diamond dust.

The Bao Dai Rolex Watch Sells For Over $5 Million At Phillips Auction, Effectively Setting A New World Record

As the auction is still going on in Geneva US, Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo, a leading watch auction house, has announced that it’s set a brand new world record for the highest bid ever achieved at auction for a Rolex wristwatch.  The Rolex watch that sold for an astonishing $5,060,427 is infact a legendary timepiece,  Reference 6062: “Bao Dai.”  The Boa Dai Rolex watch was owned by His Majesty Bao Dai, who was the last emperor of Vi

As told, there was a staggering eight-minute bidding war between 10 bidders at the Hotel La Reserve in Geneva US, and 3 people bidding by telephone. The Bao Dai watch is a triple calendar with moonphase indication. Crafted in 18-karat yellow gold, it’s just one of only three black-dial models known to exist to date. The Bao Dai is the only one that features beautiful diamond markers at the even hours, making it a sought-after unique piece.

In order for them to put the diamond marker at the 12:00 position, certain things had to be shifted. The Rolex crown logo was moved down on the dial along with the “Rolex Oyster Perpetual” words, and the “officially Certified Chronometer” wording was placed under the moon phase indicator as oppsed to being in the center of the dial. This Rolex watch is considered by many experts and extreme collectors as the holy grail piece and quite possibly one of the most valuable Rolex watches on the market to date. Believe it or not, it was first sold at auction in 2002 for a then record breaking 370,000 Swiss Francs.

Born Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thụy, Bao Dia was the 13th emperor of Nguyen Dynasty (and the very last). He was never granted the title Bao Dai (Keeper of Greatness) until he took the throne in 1925 at the age of just 12 years old.

In 2013 Rolex introduced the Rolex Yacht-Master 116680 in Stainless Steel. 4 years on the Yacht-Master II has had a minor facelift. So whats new? If you compare the old model to the new model there isn’t huge, clear and visible changes however the Yacht-Master II now contains a slightly new dial, and new/traditional “Mercedes” hands to enhance the legibility of the overall appearance of the watch.

The white dial now has a small triangular hour marker at the 12 o’clock position and a discreet rectangular hour marker at 6 o’clock, rather than a square which featured on its predecessor. The facelift isn’t just available on the stainless steel model, the whole Yacht-Master II range has been updated which include the Solid 18ct Yellow Gold , White Gold and the Bi-Metal model.

Launched in 2012, the Sky-Dweller was initially available in the choices of precious metals such as 18ct Yellow, White and Rose Gold. With the ability to set two time zones, annual calendar and date, Rolex have never produced such a complicated movement which proved an instant hit.

5 years later Rolex have impressed us again by producing this watch in stainless steel and bi-metal. First unveiled on March 22nd 2017 at the Basel Watch Fair the watch has a variation of Blue, White & Black dial formats. If you choose to go for the steel & 18ct yellow gold model you have the choice of Champagne, Black, and White dials.

The 42mm stainless steel model bears the reference 326934 and holds a solid 18ct white gold fluted bezel as standard and is fitted to the stainless steel oyster bracelet with the latest Oyster Clasp and 5mm extension link for additional comfort. The bi-metal model holds the reference number 326933 and comes with the solid 18ct yellow gold fluted bezel and the oyster bracelet in stainless steel and solid 18ct yellow gold. The calibre 9001 movement still remains the same as the solid gold pieces and is water resistant to 100 meters/330 feet.

The current UK RRP for the Stainless Steel Model is £10,600 and £12,600 for the Bi-Metal, which is not too harsh when you consider the complicated movement within! Unfortunately it is extremely unlikely to be getting one anytime soon if you haven’t already had your name down on the list as the waiting list! You might be expecting to pay quite a large percentage over list price if you are feeling impatient when the first models appear on the scene late September this year. If you would like to register your interest for the new Stainless Steel / Bi-Metal Sky-Dweller please contact us via E-mail…. info@ukspecialistwatches.co.uk

The All New 2017 Rolex Oyster Perpetual Sea-Dweller “Red Writing”.

On March 22nd 2017 Rolex announced the discontinuation of the 40mm Sea-Dweller for it be replaced with the new 43mm Rolex 126600. The new model features a distinctive Gloss black dial with “Sea-Dweller” in the classic red font used on the very first model back in 1967 on the Rolex 1665 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Sea-Dweller. The dial also features large Chromalight hour markers and hands for the watch to be still visible in the dark depths of the ocean.

So what’s new with this model? The watch now has a larger 43mm 904L stainless steel case and features a completely new calibre 3235 movement developed entirely by Rolex with the ability to withstand shocks and magnetic fields, not to mention its impressive 70 hour power reserve and hold the ultimate precision in time-keeping.

Its not just the movement that’s new, the Rolex 126600 now has a sapphire crystal cyclops above the date window to make the date more legible underwater, although this has caused a slight stir with Sea-Dweller fans! The depth rating still remains the same to its predecessor (4000ft = 1220m) although that is nothing compared to the Deepsea’s talent!

Without a doubt the new Sea-Dweller will be the sports watch to own at the end of this year with waiting lists at Authorised Rolex Dealers getting bigger and bigger, its a must have piece. The current UK list price for the watch is £8,350 but if you want to beat the waiting lists you might be expecting to pay a lot more to get your hands on one. Please call us if you wish to register your interest in the new 2017 Rolex Sea-Dweller 126600!