Rolex Redux: In-Demand Models From the Iconic Watchmaker

Wearing an iconic Rolex such as Paul Newman’s Daytona or the Sports Submariner isn’t only about getting a trendy look or flashing a status symbol. According to retailers, buyers are attracted to the history behind the dial. We spoke with three vintage watch experts to find out what their customers look for when purchasing a preowned Rolex.

“The market for vintage Rolex is stronger than ever,” says Josh Bonifas, watch expert and co-owner of Fourtané Jewelers in Carmel, Calif. “Everything is about the watch itself, the condition and the look. It’s like jewelry; if it doesn’t look good, it won’t sell.” The masculine Steve McQueen Explorer II, which retails from $10,000 to $15,000, is the shop’s best-selling model.

A vintage Steve McQueen Explorer II Rolex at Fourtainé Jewelers (courtesy of Fourtané Jewelers)

"Vintage Rolexes are very popular because of the historic appeal,” says one of the watch experts at DeMesy Fine Watches & Jewelry in Dallas. The Paul Newman Daytona men's chronograph watch in stainless steel, which sells for between $10,000 and $80,000, is a perennial favorite at the store.

A vintage Paul Newman Daytona Rolex at DeMesy Fine Watches & Jewelry (courtesy of Fourtané Jewelers)

Vintage stainless steel Sports Submariners, which are priced between $2,000 and $5,000, are the most in-demand Rolex models at Bachrach's Jewelers in Richmond, Va. “The historic part of Rolex is what attracts people to them,” says the sales manager. “They’ve been popular probably since the 1980s,” but the best-selling models in the store are from the ’60s and ’70s.

A vintage Sports Submariner Rolex at Bachrach's Jewelers (courtesy of Backrach's Jewelers)

$2.3M paid for Patek Philippe pocket watch

A recently discovered, rare Patek Philippe full 24-hour repeating pocket watch sold for an “astounding” $2.3 million at Antiquorum’s November auction, held over the weekend in Geneva.

The previously unknown, highly complicated 18-karat gold pocket watch has, in addition to the 24-hour repeater, an unusual type of five-minute repeating. It originally was estimated to sell for a maximum of about $334,000.

The “Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces” auction realized a total of $12.7 million, bringing the total for Antiquorum auctions held in Geneva this year to $28.1 million, a 28 percent year-over-year increase. It was 76 percent sold by lot and 148 percent sold by value.

In addition the Patek Philippe pocket watch, a collection of exclusive Patek Philippe watches, 10 lots in total, sold for a total of $990,909. That was more than double the price the watches were expected to fetch.

The collection includes a Ref. 855/7 champlevé enamel hunting cased pendant watch that was appearing for the first time at auction and fetched $54,600. A Ref. 866/8 dress watch with an enamel miniature portrait of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart by Suzanne Rohr (above) sold for $257,174.

Other notable lots of the sale included a Rolex Ref. 6284 with a cloisonné enamel dial featuring a map of the two Americas (below), one of only six of its kind made in 1950 and still the property of the family of its original owner.

The Rolex sold for $263,634, well above its pre-sale estimate of about $154,000.

Antiquorum’s Geneva auction had a total of 355 registered bidders, in addition the many telephone bidders and a strong in-room presence. International participation came from the United States, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, the Russian Federation, Germany and Japan.

-National Jeweler