Rolex White Watches Collection, Rolex White Watches Sale

Rolex Daytona 16528 Porcelain (16528 Porcelain)

This Rolex Daytona 16528 Porcelain (16528 Porcelain) watch was a gift for my mother. It's a great watch. The only thing was that it was big on her so she had to adjust the size. Other than that, she loved it and I was surprised on how little I spent on it.

---- [Rating: 5 / 5 stars]

Review by hasitha thalagampola, From Hong Kong Thua Thien Hue

Rolex Yachtmaster Grey Index Dial Oyster Bracelet Ladies Watch 169622GYSO

This watch is absolutely beautiful. The photo did not fully display the overall beauty of this Rolex Yachtmaster Grey Index Dial Oyster Bracelet Ladies 169622GYSO watch. The workmanship and quality is outstanding. You can not go wrong with this purchase. You will not be disappointed!!

---- [Rating: 5 / 5 stars]

Review by francis crance, From Netherlands Venlo

Rolex Oyster Perpetual Blue Dial Stainless Steel and 18kt White Gold Bezel Ladies Watch 177234BLRO

Perfect!!! RECOMMEND!

---- [Rating: 5 / 5 stars]

Review by Eero Lyytikinen, From USA Springfeld Gardens, Ny

A bezel in all the colours of the rainbow
Along with its 18 ct yellow gold case and bracelet, this COSMOGRAPH DAYTONA dons a bezel entirely set with an array of sapphires in rainbow colours. All the nuances of the celestial arc are visible, a delicate palette of reds, oranges, yellows, greens, blues, mauves and pinks. The subtle grace of these fascinating stones meticulously selected, assembled and set by Rolex is magical, endowing the watch with a stunning radiance.
Also gem-set, the case lugs, crown guard as well as the hour markers on the dial participate in the exquisite allure of this variation on the DAYTONA theme.

Exclusive GOLD CRYSTALS counters
Contrasting with the black lacquer of the dial, the reflections of the GOLD CRYSTALS counters blend with the radiance of the precious stones. Crafted from an 18 ct gold alloy perfected by Rolex in its own foundry, these exclusive counters highlight the crystal structure of the gold in a seductive play of reflections and colours. Each counter is a natural work of art, different from every other.
The OYSTER case, symbol of waterproofness
The COSMOGRAPH DAYTONA's 40 mm OYSTER case, guaranteed waterproof to a depth of 100 metres (330 feet), is a paragon of proportion and elegance. The characteristically shaped middle case is crafted from a solid block of 18 ct gold. The fluted case back is hermetically screwed down with a special tool exclusive to Rolex watchmakers. The winding crown, fitted with the patented TRIPLOCK triple waterproofness system, as well as the chronograph pushers screw down securely against the case. It is protected by a crown guard that is an integral part of the middle case. The crystal is made of virtually scratchproof synthetic sapphire. The waterproof OYSTER case ensures optimal protection for the COSMOGRAPH DAYTONA's high-precision movement.

Calibre 4130, a superlative chronograph chronometer
The COSMOGRAPH DAYTONA is equipped with calibre 4130, a self-winding mechanical chronograph movement entirely developed and manufactured by Rolex. Like all PERPETUAL movements, the 4130 is a certified Swiss chronometer, a designation reserved for high-precision watches that have successfully passed the Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC) tests. Its architecture, like that of all OYSTER watch movements, makes it singularly precise and reliable. The oscillator, the true heart of the watch, has a blue PARACHROM hairspring, patented and manufactured by Rolex in an exclusive alloy. Insensitive to magnetic fields, the PARACHROM hairspring offers great stability when exposed to temperature variations and remains up to 10 times more precise than a traditional hairspring in case of shocks.
The OYSTERLOCK clasp, functional and secure
This COSMOGRAPH DAYTONA is fitted with an OYSTER bracelet in 18 ct yellow gold with the latestgeneration OYSTERLOCK safety clasp to prevent accidental opening. Developed and patented by Rolex, this elegant solid-link bracelet also features the ingenious EASYLINK rapid extension system that allows the wearer to easily increase the bracelet length by approximately 5 mm, for additional comfort in any circumstance.

This bold incarnation of a feminine classic, in its 34 mm 18 ct EVEROSE gold case, enriches a collection already offered in yellow and white gold.

Seductive charm of EVEROSE gold
The 18 ct Everose gold of the case, bracelet and bezel sets the tone from the outset: an exclusive Rolex alloy, captivating in its inherent lustre and nobility. A mixture of serenity and vitality, sobriety and audacity, it exerts an irresistible power of seduction and gives the watch its b personality. Around the bezel sparkle 12 brilliant-cut diamonds, elegantly showcased in 18 ct white gold settings. The effect is luminous, exquisite, enchanting.

Dream dials
Dazzlingly delicate, the Goldust Dream dial is a subtle, refined marriage of white or black mother-of-pearl and gold dust. The mother-of-pearl is embellished with a new nature-inspired motif and an exquisite design in pink gold dust applied in a fine layer via a patented PVD process which preserves the mother-of-pearl's natural structure while giving it a highly original metallic sheen. The slightest ray of light illuminates this magical dial with iridescent reflections that make the fine strata of the mother-of-pearl shimmer in a subtle play of light. Each of these dials, with a large gem-set numeral at 6 o'clock, is a unique, refined work of art, striking in its delicate splendour.

Distinction and precision
The new Oyster Perpetual Datejust Special Edition stands out thanks to its gracious, curved lines, its feminine form and its new, elegant invisible clasp. It is also an Oyster with peerless precision and reliability, a waterproof chronometer equipped with a Perpetual rotor self-winding mechanical movement. A trusted companion under all circumstances.

The lady who wears this watch looks ahead, stepping confidently towards her future. She glances at her watch, living the present to the full, her sights already set on expanding horizons.

Among the 643 timepieces, Antiquorum is extremely proud to be offering for sale an extremely rare Patek Philippe Ref. 2499 as well as the personal collection of Rolex watches of the legendary 20th century explorer Sir Edmund Hillary. Previews are to be held in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Geneva.

The highlight of the sale is the extremely rare Patek Philippe Ref. 2499, Third Series, made in 1971 and sold on June 14, 1972. This 18K pink gold wristwatch with round button chronograph features a 30-minute register, perpetual calendar and moon phases. It is accompanied by a Patek Philippe box and the Extract from the Archives.
Antiquorum experts are also delighted to present the personal collection of Rolex watches that belonged to Sir Edmund Hillary. These exceptional timepieces have been consigned for sale by Lady Hillary and all had special significance for Sir Edmund.

The earliest model in this collection is a Rolex, "Oyster Perpetual, Officially Certified Chronometer", reference 6084 dating from 1953. This watch was presented to Sir Edmund Hillary by Rolex Bosecks, Calcutta, India after his descent from Everest in honour of his achievement. It was then worn by him during the Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1955-1958 - the first overland crossing of Antarctica and the first expedition to reach the South Pole since Scott in 1912 - and as such it has immense historic significance. The caseback is engraved "Sir E. Hillary".
Also part of the collection, the Rolex "Oyster Perpetual Date, Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified", REF. 15238. This 18K yellow gold tonneau shaped wristwatch with date was purchased by Sir Edmund Hillary on the 50th Anniversary of the day he reached the summit of Everest, 29th May, 2003. It is accompanied by the original Rolex certificate to Sir Edmund Hillary and a letter of authenticity.
Naturally the collection also includes both the Rolex Explorer I, reference 1016, made in 1972 - the 20th Anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary's attempt to climb Cho Oyu from the Nepal side in 1952 (Estimate: 4'000 - 6'000 CHF) and the Explorer II, reference 1655, the so-called "Steve McQueen", made in1973 and bought by Sir Edmund Hillary to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of his ascent of Everest.

In addition to Sir Edmund's collection of Rolexes, Antiquorum is delighted to offer the Rolex "Oyster Perpetual, Precision", reference 6098 that was worn by Alfred Gregory on Everest during the successful expedition of 1953. Alfred Gregory was the official expedition photographer and this watch has been consigned to Antiquorum by his family. This watch is of enormous historic significance and is likely to present the only opportunity to acquire one of the original Rolex watches that were on Everest in 1953. The caseback is engraved "A. Gregory - Everest 1953" and the watch is accompanied by the Ice Axe used during the Everest expedition, 5 original photos taken by Alfred Gregory during the climb, service letter by Rolex Geneva and a letter of authenticity from Alfred Gregory's wife.
Also offered at auction, the Patek Philippe Ref. 3450, Third Series, made in 1985. This very rare, self-winding, 18K yellow gold wristwatch features perpetual calendar, moon phases, Roman numerals for the leap year indication. It comes with a wooden fitted box, setting pin, Certificate of Origin and instruction booklet.
Of interest for the Audemars enthusiast is the Audemars Piguet "Jules Audemars - Repetition Minutes a Quantieme Perpetuel," Ref. 26063 PT., made in 2009. It is an extremely fine and rare, astronomic, minute-repeating, platinum wristwatch with perpetual calendar, leap year indication and moon phases. It is accompanied by the original special fitted wooden box, a piano-shaped wooden box to amplify the sound of the minute repeater, certificate and warranty.
Another timepiece of great interest is the Quarter-Repeating Navette-Shaped Ring Watch - One of Only Two Known Examples - A Gift to The Emperor Napoleon I. made circa 1810. This exceptional timepiece is attributed to Antoine Rochard, Geneva, the mainspring is signed Marchand and the case engraved "a L'Empereur N". This extremely fine and exceptionally rare, 18K gold, pearl and rose-cut diamond-set ring watch with virgule escapement and visible balance, is one of only two known examples of a quarter-repeating ring watch of navette shape.
Antiquorum experts are also pleased to offer a collection 40 Omega Speedmaster limited editions, property of a private Italian collector, including the "Speedmaster Professional" Apollo XIII Ref. 3450022, made in a limited series of 999 examples to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Apollo XIII mission in 1995. This stainless steel chronograph bears the Apollo XIII emblem on the subsidiary seconds dial at 9. It comes with the original box, warranty, certificate, instruction booklet, Apollo XIII patch, extra links and booklet.
AUCTION PREVIEWS
The timepieces of this auction will be on view as follows:
SHANGHAI
Tuesday November 2: 10:30 a.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Antiquorum Shanghai
Room 4106B, Bund Centre Office Tower,
222 Yan An Road East,
Shanghai 200002, China
Tel.+86 21 6335 1268
 
HONG KONG
Thursday November 4: 11:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Antiquorum Auctioneers (HK) Ltd.
Suite 704, No. 9 Queen's Road Central,
Hong Kong
Tel. + 852 2522 4168
 
ZHUHAI
Saturday November 6: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Gemdale Eton
No. 298 Jinyi Road, Xiangzhou District
Zhuhai
Tel. + 852 2522 4168
 
GENEVA
Wednesday 10 to Friday November 12: 10:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Saturday 13 & Sunday November 14: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Antiquorum's Showroom
2, rue du Mont-Blanc
1201 Geneva, Switzerland
Tel.+ 41 (0)22 909 28 50 - Fax. +41 (0)22 909 28 60
Email: geneva@antiquorum.com
 
AUCTION: Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces
Saturday, November 13
Session 1: lots 1 - 252 at 2:00 p.m.
Sunday, November 14
Session 2: lots 253 - 643 at 2:00 p.m.
Mandarin Oriental Hotel du Rhône
Salon Saint-Gervais - quai Turrettini 1, 1201 Geneve
Tel.+ 41 (0)22 909 00 00 - Fax +41 (0)22 909 00 10

26th October 2009

In the world of watch collecting there are two definitive categories: the vintage watches, typically described as those older than 20 years, and the modern watches, those that are within the first decade of their life.
Sitting between vintage and modern exists a small group of collectible "neo-vintage" watches that hover around the 15-20 year mark. It is around this age that collectors first start to identify the pieces that will one day become classics. It was in the late 1980s, just short of twenty years after its release, that a Rolex Cosmograph with peculiar registers started to gain momentum as a collectable. Now the Paul Newman Daytona sits atop the world of valuable and collectable sport watches.  
The values of Newman Daytonas today range from $30,000 all the way up to $100,000 depending on reference number, condition, and color scheme. We tend to think that we know all there is to know about this particular piece, and so values are easily obtained.
What about today's neo-vintage collectibles though? The ones that are just now coming into the spotlight as the rare birds and grail watches of future generations. Just what are they, why are they poised to climb, and why do we know so little about them?

Let's take one of the few neo-vintage that has already raised a few eyebrows, although it remains relatively under the radar except with a few die-hard collectors; the Rolex Explorer I "Blackout". Since the Explorer's inception over 50 years ago, the vast majority have been made with a black face and white markers, whether applied or painted on the dial itself. For what some experts claim is as little as 6 months, Rolex introduced an instance of the Explorer where the infamous 3, 6, and 9 were actually filled with black instead of white.  
Originally thought to exist only in E serial numbers and with silver print on the dial, we now know that the production also included later X serial Explorers with white print on the dial. The Blackout Rolexes are rare, certainly, in fact some call it the rarest sapphire crystal Rolex to date. What is not so certain is the value of this neo-vintage oddity.
One year ago, in October of 2008, Antiquorum recorded a sale of a Rolex Reference 14270 Blackout at $12,000 US. Five months later, in Antiquorum's March 2009 auction, one sold for just over $5000, and after another five months, one sold again at just above $5000 via Antiquorum. Economic conditions aside, that is a dramatic decrease in value of a rare watch in one year's time. But did the value really decrease?

While impossible to dispute that these watches did sell for less than half of the price of less than a year ago, many sellers continue to believe the Blackout is worth close to, if not well into five figures. Running a quick scan of dealers around the world, the price range of these Rolex Blackouts is astonishing. From as low as $4500 from private sellers (watch alone) to as high as $16,000 from well known European dealers (NOS, Box & Papers), we were able to track down five Blackout Explorers, in excellent or mint condition, with boxes and papers, with an average price of $10,800. Over $10,000 for a Rolex Explorer I from the 1990s, we must be crazy.  Or are we?
Charles Tearle, a Director at Antiquorum USA says "In recent years we have seen transitional variations that exist in relatively modern wristwatches, such as the Rolex Explorer I "Blackout", matte dial submariners, and the transitional IWC big pilots, have speculative presence on the secondary market." But does this mean that these models are worth up to three to four times what a traditional model sells for? Things are still unclear; Tearle adds "relatively little is known about quantities produced, but as we learn more, I believe the market value of these transitional pieces will become more definitive."
While the debate over the value of these rare Rolex "Blackouts" will likely continue on, this raises a much larger issue. How are we to assess the value neo-vintage watches if experts can't seem to agree and with such a dramatic variance in auction prices? Or, maybe this isn't an issue at all, but rather one of the reasons that watch collecting continues to gain momentum as a global passion.  The question now becomes, we know the Rolex Blackout Explorer is something special, but what else is out there and when will we realize it?  
 
 

Revue FH - February 26 2009 - N# 4

Rolex has announced a new initiative to expand its international philanthropic programme to fund young pioneers and their groundbreaking projects around the world. In early 2010, the company will name the first five recipients of the Rolex Awards for Enterprise: Young Laureates Programme, honouring men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 with inventive ideas to solve tomorrow's challenges in science and health, applied technology, exploration, the environment and cultural preservation. Award recipients will each receive a US$50,000 cash prize to enable them to pursue an original project. Equally important, they will join the network of Rolex specialists and innovators who can offer invaluable expertise and guidance.
The Young Laureates Programme is an expansion of the Rolex Awards for Enterprise, which were established in 1976. The inaugural Rolex Awards commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Oyster chronometer, the world's first waterproof watch, and were created to encourage individuals ready to take on major challenges to benefit humankind and the environment. Since 1976, 110 Rolex Awards for Enterprise have been presented to Laureates and Associate Laureates from 40 countries, implementing projects in more than 60 countries. Recent winners include a social activist who has developed an affordable strategy to build housing for the rural poor using recycled materials in her native Paraguay (Elsa Zaldivar); a Scottish physicist who created a breakthrough method to predict volcanic eruptions via an unmanned helicopter (Andrew McGonigle); and a Jordanian chemist working to save the ancient archaeological site of Petra (Talal Akasheh).
«Rolex has a history of supporting individual excellence and achievement,» said Rebecca Irvin, director of the Rolex Awards for Enterprise. «By providing project support at a critical juncture in the careers of young people, the Young Laureates Programme will reward bright new ideas and encourage the next generation to meet the challenges of the future.» Like the original Rolex Awards, the Young Laureates Programme will act as a springboard for men and women who use their creativity to improve life on the planet.
«As our world becomes more interdependent and grows more complex, young people must bring new perspectives and fresh approaches to tackling our greatest challenges,» said Gilbert Grosvenor, Chairman of the National Geographic Society and a past jury member for the Rolex Awards for Enterprise. «Particularly in this era of global change and uncertainty, the Young Laureates Programme represents a vital investment in the brightest thinkers of tomorrow.»
To find young people around the world determined to carry out projects with a significant impact, a range of institutions, organizations and individuals will be invited to nominate potential candidates. Those who accept the nomination will complete an application form that explains the scope, goals and feasibility of their projects. An independent jury will select five individuals with b potential to advance human knowledge and well-being.
Each winner will receive the $50,000 prize over the course of two years. Funding of $25,000 each in the first year will give the Young Laureates the time to bring greater focus to their projects; the second instalment of $25,000 will propel the projects forward. Rolex may also provide additional support to the Young Laureates to pursue a related activity that will add further value to their work.
The Young Laureates Programme complements the original Rolex Awards for Enterprise, it does not replace it. In 2010, five Young Laureates will be selected; in 2012, five Laureates and five Associate Laureates will again be chosen. The two variations of the programme will thus alternate every two years.
Rolex's other global philanthropic programme, the Rolex Mentor and Protege Arts Initiative, also reflects an ongoing commitment to promoting excellence in the next generation. The Arts Initiative brings together emerging artists with re-cognized masters for a year of one-to-one collaboration in music, dance, literature, theatre, film and the visual arts.
Both the Arts Initiative and the Young Laureates Programme provide the gift of time to exceptional young people at a key moment in their professional lives. Through Rolex's support, these promising individuals are able to take their work to a new level and contribute to their surrounding communities and the wider world.