1973 Rolex Oyster Perpetual Day Date 1807 Bark with Bracelet
Ref: 1807
Specification
Lugs : 20mm
Condition : Pre-Owned
Box & Papers : Box
Case Material : 18ct Yellow Gold
Warranty : 12-Months NON-Waterproof Warranty
Points of Mention
This watch is sold with its original Rolex box but no Rolex paperwork. The watch comes paired with its original full-size 20mm 18ct Yellow Gold Rolex Bark textured centre link Oyster bracelet with a signed folding clasp plus a 20mm brown strap. The watch is from Circa. 1973, based on the serial numbers, and is sold in worn vintage condition, but overall very fair condition as you can see. The watch comes with our 12-Months NON-Waterproof Warranty.
For more photos see here - https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/15Cql6hv12tenxxQ1AncYReuoa6noIlPG?usp=drive_link
4K YouTube video, skip to 5:29 - https://youtu.be/PrW6AGaFoX0
The Watch
Here we have a 1973 Rolex Oyster Perpetual Day Date 1807 Bark with Bracelet that has a curvaceous 36mm Oyster case in solid 18ct Yellow Gold, the slender case has a subtle curve towards the lugs with a lug-to-lug length of 43.5mm and a thickness of 12mm ensuring a comfortable fit on your wrist. On the right side, a signed 18ct Yellow Gold crown. An attractive bark-textured 18k yellow gold bezel adds character to the watch creating an impressive wrist presence, and a domed crystal sits above a striking champagne dial, the outer minute track is precisely executed and has Tritium lume pips surrounding applied 18k yellow gold baton indexes marking the hours, that magically catch the light as you rotate your wrist. At 3 o’clock a framed date window with cyclops magnification on the crystal, at 12 o’clock a day crescent, elegant 18ct Yellow Gold hands filled with Tritium are complemented by a sweeping tapered second hand, at 12 o’clock an applied Rolex crown with “Rolex Oyster Perpetual Day-Date'' and at 6 o’clock “Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified”. On the reverse, a coin-edged screw-down gold case back, inside an automatic Rolex Cal. 1556, 26 jewels, 19,800 beats per hour. The watch comes paired with its original full-size 20mm 18ct Yellow Gold Rolex Bark textured centre link Oyster bracelet with a signed folding clasp plus a 20mm brown strap and comes with its Rolex presentation box.
Personal Note
There will forever be something mesmerising and alluring about a Rolex Day-Date, whether it be the fact it's all gold, the weight, the design or the overall fit and feel, they are perfection on and off the wrist! This "Bark" finish 1807 elevates that for me personally, for a small premium on a non-bark model I feel this is worth every penny! Plus, if this feels too flashy on the bracelet, a nice brown strap instead tones it right down and makes it perfectly wearable for those who don't want all gold on their wrist.
The Brand
In 1905, German-born Hans Wilsdorf and his brother-in-law Alfred Davis set up a company in London that imported Swiss movements which were installed in British cases and sold to jewellers who put their names on the dials. Recognising the potential for their brand, Wilsdorf created the brand name Rolex in 1908. In 1910, a Rolex became the first wristwatch to carry the Swiss Certificate of Chronometric Precision, awarded by the Official Watch Rating Centre in Bienne, Switzerland. Demand for Rolex watches rose swiftly, and British taxes on the Swiss movements Rolex used prompted Wilsdorf to move the business to Geneva, Switzerland, in 1919. With production costs lowered, Wilsdorf quickly set out to solve the age-old problem of moisture and dust entering a watch case and damaging the movement. The Rolex watchmakers came up with a fully sealed watch case, which Wilsdorf named the Oyster, and released to an appreciative audience in 1926. In 1931, Rolex introduced the first automatic winding wristwatch, giving it the legendary name Oyster Perpetual. In 1945, they released Datejust. The Datejust was the first watch to have the date jump instantaneously at midnight. The 1950s saw a whole lot of releases such as the Air-King (1958), the Explorer (1953), the Submariner (1953), the GMT Master (1955), the Day-Date (1956), the electromagnetic field resistant Milgauss (1956), the Lady-Datejust (1957) and the first Deep Sea model (1960). Wilsdorf’s death in 1960, saw ownership of Rolex S.A. (a collection of sub-companies) passed to the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation which was founded by Wilsdorf in 1945, the mission of which is simply to sustain Rolex S.A. indefinitely.