Important Collectors Wristwatches, P...
Hong Kong,the Ritz Carlton Hotel,harbour Room, 3rd Floor, Nov 25, 2006
LOT 197
Ref. 1665, ?Double-Red Sea-Dweller Submariner?
Rolex, ?Oyster Perpetual Date, Sea-Dweller, Submariner 2000, 2000 ft./610 m.,
Superlative Chronometer, Officially Certified?, Ref. 1665, case No. 6252471. Made
in 1980.
Fine and rare, center seconds, self-winding, water-resistant, stainless steel gentleman's wristwatch
with ?Sea-Dweller, Submariner 2000? in red, gas escape valve, date and a stainless steel Oyster
"Fliplock" bracelet.
HKD 160,000 - 220,000
USD 20,000 - 28,000 / EUR 16,000 - 23,000
C. Three-body, polished and brushed, screwed-down case back and ?Triplock? crown, first generation helium escape valve at 9, graduated bidirectional revolving black bezel for the decompression times, winding crown protected by the crown guard.
D. Black with luminous round, triangular and baton indexes, aperture for the date. Luminous steel "skeleton" hands.
M. Cal. 1570, rhodium-plated, "oeil-deperdrix" decoration, 26 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, monometallic balance adjusted to five positions and temperature, shock absorber, self compensating free sprung Breguet balance spring, Microstella
regulating screws, hack mechanism.
Dial, case and movement signed.
Diam. 40 mm. Thickness 17 mm.
| Grading System | |
|---|---|
Grade: AA |
Very good |
Case: 3 |
Good |
Movement: 3* |
Good Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense |
Dial: 3-01 |
Good HANDS Original |
Notes
The ?Sea-Dweller 2000? was the first production watch to employ a gas escape valve. This allows the interior of a watch to decompress and avoid injury if the crystal of the watch explodes. Crystals ?popping? was not an uncommon problem during decompression after deep diving, this is caused when the internal pressure of a watch is higher that the ambient pressure in a decompression chamber. It can be very hazardous for the divers in the chamber as it is not possible to open the chamber until decompression is complete, otherwise the inhabitants can contract the ?bends?. Examples of the ?Sea-Dweller? without gas escape valve are known, one was sold by Antiquorum, New York on the 1st of December 2004 as lot 98.