Rolex
It is not quite so well known that Rolex was actually founded in the UK in London in 1905 and it was not until 1919 that the company transferred its base of operations to Geneva, Switzerland. It is also a misconception that the world of luxury watches is a gentlemans one, as the first recorded wristwatch was actually designed for a lady. In June 1810, Abraham-Louis Breguet made a watch for Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples. For many decades, women have proudly worn Rolex watches and have been integral to the brand’s success.
Description
This spectacular diamond and white gold ladies cocktail watch carries a beautiful original, unrestored and untouched silver-white dial. The stunning 18ct white gold case carries wonderful, filigree articulated white gold diamond lugs which when worn, follow the contour of the wrist. This adds significantly to the sensation and drama of this wonderful timepiece. The watch has an infinitely adjustable white gold bracelet, which allows it to fit any ladies size wrist.
This watch is all correctly signed by Rolex on the dial, movement and case. It was produced in 1964 and made for the UK market and therefore carries Geneve 18ct hallmarks.
We have acquired this watch from its original owner who bought it in 1964 and it has remained within the same family ever since.
The Dial
The silver-white dial is simply beautiful and carries white gold ‘baton’ hour indices which are swept by unrestored ‘leaf’ hands. The dial design and case complement each other beautifully. Please note, at 19mm diameter, excluding the crown, this is quite a small watch in comparison with most others, however the dial is quite easy to read, even at arm’s length.
This dial is original and unrestored and has been left this way by our restoration team due to its extraordinary good condition for its age. Usually, we restore the dials of the watches we sell, however we felt in this case, due to its condition, it was best to retain some of its originality and charm.
The Movement
The high grade Calibre 1401, 18 Jewel, hand-wound movement is in incredibly clean and sparkling condition and has just been fully overhauled and serviced by our expert vintage Rolex specialist watchmaker.
Rolex went to considerable lengths and expense to ensure its smaller series movements perform equally as well as its larger gents Precision movements. These are high precision movements and the example here is running perfectly, having been calibrated to run consistently within plus or minus 14 seconds per day! This is superb for any small mechanical watch and is no exaggeration – we have checked and confirmed the test results on our electronic watch timegrapher. This movement also has an excellent power reserve of 44 hours when fully wound.
The movement is signed ‘Rolex’, ‘Geneve’, ‘Swiss’ and ‘18 Rubis’ (Jewels) and is marked with the Calibre number 1401. This particular movement is in beautiful condition and with similar care and regular servicing, say every 3 to 4 years, we would fully expect this watch to continue to run very happily for another 50+ years! We are therefore totally confident in offering this watch with our 12 months’ written warranty*.
*Please note – our 12 months’ warranty is only applicable if the list price is paid.
The Case
Although this is not an overly large ‘statement’ piece at just 19mm, excluding the crown, it is hugely impressive with the art-deco and imperial style of the period, exemplified by filigree articulated white gold and diamond lugs. The general condition of the case leads us to believe this watch has led a charmed life and seen very little use.
The stunning, diamond case is beautiful with the floral decoration going along the lugs. This incredible dial has 27 diamonds on each lug and 28 diamonds on the bezel, equalling 82 natural, genuine 0.02ct, 8/8 cut diamonds.
As one would expect, this is a high quality case, which from all appearances seems to have been very well cared for since there are no signs of over-polishing, dings, scratches or other damage, visible to the naked eye. Inside the case-back is signed ‘Montres Rolex SA Geneva Switzerland’ with 18ct hallmarks which date the watch to 1964. Internally, the case also carries the model number 2166 and the serial number 871457 is shown externally.
As always, our standard advice applies: vintage watches should be kept clean and dry at all times.
The Bracelet
The watch is on a period, white gold bracelet with a two step ladder catch and lock and is in perfect condition, as can be seen in the images.
Please note – this bracelet will expand to a wide range of wrist sizes between 15.25cm – 15.75cm i.e. a small to mid/large ladies size wrists. This bracelet could be tailored to size which we will carry out at our expense.
The Box and Papers
Although there is no original paperwork with this watch, the reference numbers, markings, signatures and hallmarks are all correct, dating the watch to 1964.
Detailed particulars are included with the receipt, along with our 12 months’ warranty* and a separate insurance valuation for the replacement value will be provided at the time of sale. This will also include our ‘Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee’ which states: “If this watch proves to be anything less than totally authentic, or not as described, Vintage Gold Watches of London will offer you a full refund at any time”.
This watch comes complete with its beautiful, original Rolex clam shell presentation box, as shown.
In Conclusion
We have here a beautiful, rare, usable and highly collectable, vintage gold ladies cocktail watch, from horology’s most famous name which is something of beauty, to use, wear, treasure and enjoy!
This watch will also make an excellent investment and family heirloom piece. Even though vintage gold Rolex prices have continued to rise markedly in the past 2-3 years, we still feel fine examples such as this are undervalued. As each year goes by and the world market for vintage gold Rolex watches continues to expand, availability will become more limited, so prices are surely destined to climb ever higher!
A word about our prices – We always try our hardest to acquire the very highest quality watches we can find, before restoring them to the highest possible standards. We then offer these at the fairest prices we can, taking into account our pre and post sales care and service. This approach means we will never be the cheapest, but nor will we be the most expensive. Indeed there are some well-known stores in West London which are very successful, charging between two to three times the price you see here. We therefore consider our prices to be very fair, given the quality of watches we have to offer.
We are happy to accept PayPal as this is the quickest method of payment. However, if you would like to pay by UK cheque or by UK bank transfer we will be pleased to assist you with this and pass on a 3% transaction saving to you. Similarly, if you wish to pay by International SWIFT or Bank Wire Transfer, we will provide you with our BIC / Swift number and our IBAN number.
Please note, we also welcome part exchanges, along with outright purchases of similar watches for us to restore, service and list. We can also offer Watch Service, Watch Repair & Watch Restoration, please see here.
If you have any questions please call 020 7727 7095 or if calling from overseas on +44 2077277095.
We are here, ready, available and awaiting your call!
Finally, please enjoy some time spent viewing our other fine vintage gold watches!
Thank you.
Andrew M via feefo 
3rd December 2024 
JLC1891 
