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Lot 18 ROLEX
DAY-DATE ONYX DIAL REF. 18168
DAY-DATE ONYX DIAL REF. 18168
ROLEX. A RARE AND ATTRACTIVE 18K GOLD AUTOMATIC WRISTWATCH WITH SWEEP CENTRE SECONDS, DAY, DATE, ONYX DIAL AND BRACELET
SIGNED ROLEX, DAY-DATE MODEL, REF. 18168 , CASE NO. 9'461'067, CIRCA 1987
Closed13 May 2023
Price Realised
CHF 40,320
More Information
Specialist note
The present Day-Date is distinguished by its highly attractive and intact Onyx dial with gilt printing. An uncommon reference 18168, which was originally fitted with a baguette-set bezel. Carefully serviced by its owner, the bezel has been replaced by the standard fluted bezel.
While Rolex offered a range of Day-Date models with stone dials, including lapis lazuli, marble, various hardstones, opal, coral and malachite, the black onyx dial is perhaps the most recognizable for its unadorned starkness. With its endless black, absence of hour makers and minimal printing to the surface, examples fitted with this particular version take on an almost abstract quality where time rather than being specific becomes an approximate value.
While Rolex offered a range of Day-Date models with stone dials, including lapis lazuli, marble, various hardstones, opal, coral and malachite, the black onyx dial is perhaps the most recognizable for its unadorned starkness. With its endless black, absence of hour makers and minimal printing to the surface, examples fitted with this particular version take on an almost abstract quality where time rather than being specific becomes an approximate value.