1920s 18ct gold cushion vintage Rolex Oyster watch
Date: 1928
Case: 18ct gold, 32 x 32mm
Movement: Rolex Ultra Prima
Dial: White enamel, black Arabic numerals
Lugs: 16mm
An incredibly rare 18ct gold cushion Rolex Oyster watch from 1928, with white enamel dial and Arabic numerals!
A 1928, rare, early 18ct gold cushion vintage Rolex Oyster watch. The case measures 32 x 32mm, 16mm lug size and an Oyster Patent winding crown. The case is signed Rolex, 20 World’s Records, Great Britain Patents and hallmarked Glasgow 1928. The manual wind, Ultra Prima movement is signed Rolex, Timed to 6 positions, For All Climates with 15 jewels. The white enamel dial, with sunken centre, has black Arabic numerals with subsidiary seconds dial and fine blued steel ‘Romaines Doubles’ hands. The dial is signed Rolex Oyster above the centre.
The Rolex Oyster watch
Following the end of World War I, global trading resumed and Rolex watches were being sent abroad, particularly to the the hot and humid tropical countries of the British Empire. Many of the watches were found to have rusted on arrival following a long damp voyage!
Hans Wilsdorf (co-founder of Rolex) was determined to produce a ‘water-proof’ watch and commented;
“We must succeed in making a watch case so tight that our movements will be permanently guaranteed against damage caused by dust, perspiration, heat and cold. Only then will the perfect accuracy of the Rolex watch be secured.”
The Rolex Oyster watch was produced a few years later in 1926 with a ‘three-piece’ case, (the front and back screwing into the body). An iconic design that has become probably the best selling waterproof wristwatch.
