ROLEX SUBMARINER REF. 1680 "RED Steel wristwatch,... - Lot 82 - Maison R&C, Commissaires-Priseurs Associés

ROLEX SUBMARINER REF. 1680 "RED Steel wristwatch, matte black dial, "Rolex Oyster Perpetual Date" at noon and "SUBMARINER / 660ft=200m / SUPERLATIVE CHRONOMETER OFFICIALLY CERTIFIED", minute track with white lines, tritium markers, luminova "Mercedes" hands, date at three o'clock magnified by cyclops on chimney glass, "SWISS - T <25" mention. Bidirectional bezel, tritium ball. Signed screw-in crown, three points for Triplock technology. Steel caseback signed Rolex reference 1680 and III. 71 inside. Case with engraving reference 1680 and serial number 322616*. Mechanical self-winding movement signed Rolex reference 1575 (signed 1570 on the bridge, common anomaly to all references 1680), numbered D451232. Steel Oyster bracelet reference 93150 end pieces 501B, folding clasp Fliplock signed Rolex, two extension blades. Watch functional at the time of the expertise, without guarantee of future operation and condition of parts. Accompanied by its original box and case, two extra links, a Rolex service suede and invoices for service at Rolex with service warranty card. Later bezel insert, service hands and bracelet changed during an overhaul. Circa 1973 Diameter 40 mm The Rolex Submariner reference 1680 is famous as the first Rolex Submariner reference to display the date, as well as the first Submariner to come in precious materials. This reference 1680 was produced at Rolex from 1967 to 1979. And since Rolex remains sometimes full of mystery, we can observe on many references some unusual specificities. In this case, this reference 1680 is unusual, since it reveals the writing "SUBMARINER" at six o'clock painted in red, giving it the nickname of Submariner "Red". A specificity common to all the Rolex Submariner 1680 produced between 1969 and 1974/1975. After this date, the references 1680 will display the mention "SUBMARINER" in white. The watch that we have the pleasure to offer for sale is equipped with the generation of dial called Mark IV, which is none other than the first "feet first" dial, understanding with the feet displayed before the meters in the depth line, and if we look closely at the mention "SUBMARINER" with a magnifying glass we notice that the red paint has been applied on a white paint. The dial of our example is in a very good state of preservation. The watch presented comes directly from the son of its first owner who gave the watch to him in 2016 and was probably purchased during a family trip to Switzerland in the early 1970s. The watch has undergone several services at Rolex for different work including the bezel insert, a nice but later example from the 1980s, and the bracelet insert which is a later reference changed during the revision in the early 2010s. The other specificity of the proposed reference is that it comes with its original box and box cover, the only accessories kept by the father of the current owner. A watch with a dial that reminds us of the beauty and richness of Rolex references from another time.