This Watch Auction Has So Many Grail-Level Rolexes It'll Blow Your Mind
Esquire
This Watch Auction Has So Many Grail-Level Rolexes It'll Blow Your Mind
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Buying a watch isn't the first thing on a lot of folks' minds right now, and that's understandable. We should, all of us, be considering how we can give directly to support the cause that people around the country are marching for. Then, we should be thinking about how we can support black-owned businesses now and in the future. Then, maybe, if you're the type of person who loves watches, it's time to take a minute for yourself and take a look at an auction that includes so many incredible vintage Rolexes it'll make your head spin.
"This year is certainly an atypical time for the entire world," writes Paul Altieri of Bob's Watches in an email, "however the future of watch collecting looks incredibly bright." He notes that he's even seen more people entering the vintage watch market, because the value proposition still holds strong. So, this June, Bob's Watches is offering up 16 styles that run the gamut of lusted-after vintage Rolexes in the company's latest Fresh Finds auction.
"There is not a single watch in our entire 'Fresh Finds' auction that isn't worth getting excited about," Altieri explains, "but there are a few standouts. There is a ref. 6536 Rolex Submariner, which is an incredibly rare model from the very early days of the Submariner's history, and it is the small-crown version of the iconic ref. 6538 Submariner that was worn by Sean Connery in the original 1960s James Bond films. Additionally, there is also a ref. 6241 Rolex 'Paul Newman' Daytona—and yes, this is the exact one that made headlines last year when a woman found it inside a couch that she had purchased from a thrift store."
Thats just two of the models on offer, meaning there are 14 more to explore. Check them all out below.
Vintage Rolex GMT-Master 1675 'Pepsi' Stainless Steel
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vintage rolex
bobswatches.com
Rolex GMT Master 1675 Stainless SteelBob's does NOT charge a buyer's premium – what you bid is what you pay.Condition ReportDialExcellent original glossy gilt dial with creamy yellow hour markers and matching hands. All lume glows brightly when exposed to UV and falls off rapidly at the same rate. The gloss lacquer is in excellent condition with a mirror like finish. Features a mini-GMT hand-set.CaseExcellent original stainless steel case that has previously been polished in the past with light wear from use. Serial and reference numbers remain crisp and well defined.BezelExcellent original fat font Pepsi bezel insert which has beautifully faded to a light blue and pink. Bezel insert has very light wear consistent with age.BraceletOriginal stainless steel 9315 fold-over oyster link bracelet with 12 links. Bracelet is in good condition and has slight stretch from use. The clasp stamped with a 3-70 date code.Box and PapersBob's presentation box, Certificate of Authenticity, and warranty card.Catalog Essay:Rolex introduced the reference 1675 GMT-Master in 1959 as the second iteration of its iconic dual-timezone pilot’s watch. While the ref. 1675 was not the very first GMT-Master watch that Rolex ever released, it represents the point in the collection’s history where the GMT-Master first started to gain its own unique look and feel. For many collectors, the ref. 1675 is the quintessential vintage GMT-Master watch, and surviving examples of this historic reference can be found with a surprising range of variation. While the inaugural Rolex GMT-Master reference was essentially a modified version of Rolex’s existing Turn-O-Graph model, the ref. 1675 was designed from the ground up to be a watch entirely of its own purpose-built design. With the introduction of the ref. 1675, the case of the GMT-Master grew to 40mm and it also saw the addition of crown-guards - two traits that have been featured on every GMT-Master watch that Rolex has released ever since. Production of the ref. 1675 GMT-Master lasted un
Vintage Rolex Submariner 5513 Stainless Steel
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vintage rolex
bobswatches.com
Rolex Submariner 5513 Stainless SteelBob's does NOT charge a buyer's premium – what you bid is what you pay.Condition ReportDialExcellent original condition and very clean matte black meters first tritium dial with creamy lume plots and matching hands. All luminous plots remain intact.CaseExcellent original condition stainless steel case that has been previously polished and has with light wear from use. Serial and reference numbers remain crisp and well defined. Case back has an engraving "CHARLES BERNARD SMITH."BezelOriginal black bezel insert is in very good condition and shows some light wear from use. The bezel insert has faded to a nice navy hue.BraceletOriginal stainless steel oyster rivet bracelet with 12 links. Bracelet is in good condition and has slight stretch from use. The clasp stamped with a 2-65 date code.Box and PapersBob's presentation box, Certificate of Authenticity, and warranty card.Catalog Essay:For many Rolex collectors, the reference 5513 is the archetypal vintage Submariner. While it was not the very first Submariner reference, it is arguably the most famous, and is widely considered to be one of the must-have models from Rolex’s iconic Submariner collection. Worn by everyone from Hollywood actors and celebrities to military personnel and even James Bond himself, the ref. 5513 perfectly embodies the spirit of Rolex’s legendary professional dive watch. Rolex first introduced the ref. 5513 in 1962 as a less expensive, non-chronometer rated version of its popular Submariner dive watch. Almost identical to its ref. 5512 sibling, the Rolex Submariner 5513 was powered by a different movement and consequently featured a dial that lacked the additional two lines of chronometer-certification text. In real-world use, the timekeeping performance between these two models was incredibly similar, and so the ref. 5512 was ultimately discontinued, while the ref. 5513 became the go-to dive watch for military personnel largely due to its lower price point. Production of the ref. 5513 Submari
Vintage Rolex Daytona 6239 Stainless Steel
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vintage rolex
bobswatches.com
Rolex Daytona 6239 Stainless SteelBob's does NOT charge a buyer's premium – what you bid is what you pay.Condition ReportDialExcellent original condition and very clean silver tritium "Small Daytona" dial with warm creamy lume plots and matching hands. All luminous plots remain intact. Black sub-dials are in excellent condition.CaseExcellent original condition stainless steel case that has been previously polished with light wear from use. Serial and reference numbers remain crisp and well defined.BezelOriginal stainless steel 300 UPH bezel is in very good condition with light wear.BraceletOriginal stainless steel USA jubilee bracelet with 18 links. Bracelet is in good condition and has slight stretch from use. The clasp has a few dings.Box and PapersBob's presentation box, Certificate of Authenticity, and warranty card.Catalog Essay:The reference 6239 was first released in 1963 and marks the official start of the now-iconic Rolex Daytona collection. While Rolex was producing chronograph wristwatches for a number of years prior to this point in time, it was the ref. 6239 that first moved the tachymeter scale from the dial to the bezel and forever set the standard for Rolex chronograph watches.The Rolex Daytona 6239 is characterized by its manual-wind movement, metal bezel, and pump-style chronograph pushers. These early Rolex Daytona watches pre-date the implementation of screw-down pushers, and consequently do not have the ‘Oyster’ designation on their dials. Additionally, the ‘Daytona’ name did not start appearing on Rolex chronograph dials until around 1965, so this particular model with an estimated production date of 1966 represents some of the earliest Daytona-branded watches, with the ‘DAYTONA’ name appearing directly below the word ‘COSMOGRAPH’ on the upper half of the dial, rather than above the register at 6 o’clock like later-era examples.Reference 6239 Daytona watches were offered in either stainless steel or yellow gold, and the steel models were typically fitted with either black dia
Vintage Rolex Submariner 5513 Stainless Steel
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vintage rolex
bobswatches.com
Rolex Submariner 5513 Stainless SteelBob's does NOT charge a buyer's premium – what you bid is what you pay.Condition ReportDialExcellent original condition and very clean matte black meters first tritium dial with warm creamy lume plots and matching hands. All luminous plots remain intact.CaseExcellent original condition stainless steel case that has previously been polished in the past, with very light ear from use. Serial and reference numbers remain crisp and well defined. Inside caseback is engraved 5513 II.67.BezelOriginal black fat font "kissing 4" bezel insert is in very good condition and shows some light wear.BraceletOriginal stainless steel fold over link oyster bracelet with 12 links. Bracelet is in good condition and has slight stretch from use. The clasp stamped with a 4-71 date code.Box and PapersBob's presentation box, Certificate of Authenticity, and warranty card.Catalog Essay:The reference 5513 Rolex Submariner was first released in 1962, and remained in production until 1989, making it the Submariner reference with the longest production period in the history of Rolex’s iconic dive watch. Due to having a production span of over a quarter of a century, Rolex Submariner 5513 watches can be found with a wide range of variation when it comes to dials, bezels, crown guards, crystals, and bracelets. This diversity within a single reference makes the ref. 5513 Submariner one of the most interesting and exciting Rolex references to collect. During its production period, the ref. 5513 Submariner was fitted with three different generations of dials. The very first reference 5513 watches were fitted with glossy gilt dials; however by around 1967, Rolex stopped using gild dials, and switched to matte dials, which lasted until the mid-1980s. By approximately 1984, Rolex had discontinued matte dials on the Submariner collection, and switched to gloss black dials with applied, white gold hour markers, which is similar to the style of dials fitted to modern Rolex Submariner watches. Despite not
Vintage Rolex Explorer 1655 'Steve McQueen' Stainless Steel
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Vintage Rolex Daytona 6241 'Paul Newman' Stainless Steel
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Vintage Subs? Check. Daytonas? Yep, those too.