Rolex Precision Cal.1200 9ct 1958

Rolex

Founded in 1905 in England by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis as Wilsdorf & Davis, the partnership soon became known as the Rolex Watch Company in 1915, moving to its new Geneva headquarters in 1919. The success of the wristwatch can be largely attributed to many of Rolex’s innovations which made the company one of the most respected and well-known of all luxury brands. These have included its famous “Oyster” case — the world’s first water-resistant and dustproof watch case, invented in 1926 — and its “Perpetual” — the world’s first reliable, self-winding movement for the wristwatch, launched in 1933. These would form the foundation for Rolex’s Datejust and Day-Date, respectively introduced in 1945 and 1956. Also and equally importantly, Rolex is known for its sports watches, such as the Explorer, Submariner and GMT-Master, launched in the mid-1950s.

Description

A simply wonderful early Rolex Precision gentleman’s dress watch. A stunning watch in every regard with a beautiful previously restored dial, wonderful movement and an exceptional 9ct yellow gold case. The dial is particularly unusual and attractive, characterised by mixed ‘spearhead’ and standard Arabic hour indices on an ivory-cream dial.

This is a very clean and well cared for example which has undergone some very light and gentle polishing to bring it back to the almost new condition you see here. The watch also carries the high grade Cal.1200 hand-wound movement, which is in spectacular condition.

Note: At 31mm, this watch would originally have been marketed as a gent’s watch, as during the 1950s, gent’s watches tended to be much smaller. Today however the fashion is for gents to wear much larger watches and for ladies to wear this kind of watch. Therefore this could be considered suitable for both ladies and gents.

The Dial

Classic Rolex simplicity and typical of the 1950s. A previously restored beautifully balanced and symmetrical dial, complemented with a subsidiary seconds dial at ‘6’. The original unrestored ‘lance’ hands are in remarkable condition and are paired with ‘spearhead’ hour indices and standard Arabic numerals at ‘3’ and ‘9’

The dial is correctly signed and branded with the Rolex Coronet at 12, along with ‘Rolex Precision’ with Swiss at the very bottom.

This dial has been previously restored to a very high standard yet remains in outstanding condition.

The Movement

The high grade Cal.1200 manual wind movement is incredibly clean and also in incredibly good condition. It has just been overhauled and serviced by our expert watchmaker and is running perfectly. These movements are very highly regarded for their accuracy and reliability and this movement has been calibrated to run arrow straight within +9 seconds per day! This is no exaggeration – we have checked the test results on our electronic watch timer. This movement also has a really excellent 58-hour power reserve when fully wound.

The movement is signed ‘Montres Rolex SA Geneva Swiss’ and ’Seventeen 17 Jewels’ with the calibre number 1200.

This particular movement is in superb condition and with regular servicing, we would fully expect this watch to run quite happily for many more decades to come. We are therefore very confident in offering this watch with a 12-month written warranty*.

*Please note – our 12 months’ warranty is only included if the list price is paid.

The Case

The 9ct yellow gold case is in excellent condition, having been very well cared for, and shows only the faintest signs of wear visible to the naked eye. The full thickness press-fit case-back clicks securely into place just as it should and is of full thickness, having never been inscribed.

The case measures 31mm in diameter, excluding the correct Rolex unsigned crown. As mentioned above, this was a typical gent’s sized watch during the mid-century but could be considered equally suitable as a ladies watch today.

This is a Dennison made case and therefore is signed ‘Made in England for Rolex’ and A.L.D. which was the Dennison manufacturers stamp. The case also carries the reference number 12868, the serial number 881653 and UK 9ct hallmarks which date this watch to 1958. The case, case-back and bezel are all in superb condition with no marks or scratches visible to the naked eye. The watch case has been exceptionally well cared for and so the case has simply required a clean and gentle polish to bring it back to its current ‘like new’ condition.

As ever, our standard advice applies: vintage watches should be kept clean and dry at all times.

Strap and Buckle

The watch is fitted with a high quality, brown leather strap and gold-plated Rolex buckle. However, if a different colour or style of strap is preferred, we will do our best to provide this at no extra charge. We carry tan, conker, dark brown burgundy and black straps in stock, in plain padded leather, alligator, or lizard skin.

The Box and Papers

Although there are no original papers with the watch, the numbers and markings are all correct, dating this watch to 1958.

Detailed particulars will be included with our purchase receipt for your interest and security. A separate insurance valuation for the replacement value of this watch will be provided at the time of sale along with our unique ‘Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee’ which states: “If this watch proves to be anything less than 100% genuine, authentic and original, a full refund will be given at any time”.

The watch comes complete with a green Rolex presentation pouch, as shown in the photographs.

Payment and Delivery

If you would like to pay by bank transfer, we will be pleased to assist you with this. 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 check the import duties and any taxes your government may apply, these are different for each country and, unfortunately, out of our control.

We understand there may be some ‘loopholes’ that may help you avoid these charges; however, attempting to use these could impact our ongoing ability to serve our growing international customer base.

For those who happen to visit London on occasion, we are, of course, more than happy to store your watch until we can meet you in our offices in Kensington, London, and hand your watch directly to you there.

As with all our watches, this watch will be sold under our 14 days no-quibble sale or return policy.