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Rolex Day-Date 36 1803 Day-Date 36 (super rare RED gold not Rose gold / rivet oyster / claw dial)

Pre-owned () | Year of production 1961 | No original box | No original papers
$43,598
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Item is in stock
Anticipated delivery: 5/1 - 5/17
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More About This Listing

Basic Info
Listing code J17WS0
Brand Rolex
Model Day-Date 36
Reference number 1803
Dealer product code 2023-161
Movement Automatic
Case material Yellow gold
Bracelet material Red gold
Year of production 1961
Condition
Scope of delivery
No original box, no original papers
Gender Men's watch/Unisex
Location Germany, München
Price €39,700 (= $43,598)
Availability Item is in stock

Caliber
Movement Automatic
Caliber/movement 1556
Base caliber 1570
Power reserve 48 h
Number of jewels 26

Case
Case material Yellow gold
Case diameter 36 mm
Water resistance 10 ATM
Bezel material Red gold
Crystal Plexiglass
Dial Silver
Dial numerals No numerals

Bracelet/strap
Bracelet material Red gold
Bracelet color Gold
Clasp Fold clasp
Clasp material Red gold

Functions
Date, Weekday

Description
This is an automatically translated text.
Brand: Rolex
Model: Day-Date
Reference: 1803
Year: 1961
Serial number: 680XXX
Material: 18 carat red gold
Bracelet: 18 carat red gold
Diameter: 36 millimeters
Condition: very good
Box&papers: no

Description: Extremely rare 1803 Day-Date in rose gold with claw dial from my personal collection!

Yes, you read that right. This really is an extremely rare variant of the Day-Date. Throughout its history, Rolex has predominantly produced yellow gold Day-Dates. This is followed at a considerable distance by white gold models, then the rose gold models and right at the end, even after the platinum models, the red gold models. We are talking about perhaps one percent of all Day-Dates up to the beginning of 2000 that were produced in red gold!

How do you recognize red gold? As the name suggests, it is significantly redder than all other alloys. Compared to rose gold, the proportion of copper is significantly higher, but the proportion of silver in the alloy is lower. We tested this watch and the strap and came up with the following values:
74.3 yellow gold, 21.2 percent copper and 4.2 silver.

And now the hard facts about this beauty:

The case is in wonderful condition. Although it has probably been refurbished only once, I was absolutely thrilled when I held this watch in my hands for the first time. The horns are full, the case has wonderful proportions and the edges and matt case finish have been perfectly executed.

There are slight signs of wear and a minimal scratch on one horn, but overall in wonderful condition.

I would also like to draw particular attention to the bezel. This is the early Day-Date version. This is characterized by finer and narrower serrations, as well as a lower profile. This harmonizes perfectly with the case and makes the watch picture-perfect.

This watch has a total of three highlights. We have already discussed the alloy. Now comes the dial. This is the rare Swiss Only dial variant with the so-called claw or claw indexes. This dial variant can only be found in early 1803 cases and is characterized by the indexes and the fantastic sunburst finish. As radium was used as the illuminant on the dial and in the hands, these dials are never quite perfect. The radiation simply reacted too strongly with the lacquer on the dial. The dial used here shows only slight traces and therefore belongs to the upper category in terms of quality.

The radium hand set is original to the watch and dial and in the equally rare Dauphine version (describes the shape of the hands).

Finally, the last highlight. This is an equally rare Gay Freres Oyster rivet bracelet, also in red gold. Wonderful condition and super rare, it rounds off the overall picture of the watch perfectly. It is stamped with 64 and may have been added to the watch at a later date. Alternatively, this watch was kept by the concessionaire for a relatively long time and was then sold with a specially ordered strap at the customer's request.

Conclusion: Since a new and even rarer (yes, there is such a thing ;-)) Day-Date variant will enrich my collection, this beauty has to go. It hurts and therefore I hope that it finds a new owner who loves it as much as I did.

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Seller

TheWatchGuy T.W.G. KG
Professional dealer | On Chrono24 since 2018
München, Germany
English, German
161 watches sold
29 active listings
München, Germany
English, German

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7 items sold

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