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Lot Essay
So rare is the Rolex Space-Dweller that few collectors have ever seen one at first hand. The model has become legendary among steel Rolex tool watches as the short-lived experimental version of the Explorer I reference 1016. The Space-Dweller name replaces the Explorer name printed on all other reference 1016 watches.
The Space-Dweller was made as a trial series of a small number of re-branded Explorer watches especially for the Japanese market. The name was coined to commemorate a visit by NASA’s ‘Project Mercury’ astronauts in 1963 - the astronauts were at that time considered to be the world’s greatest explorers and therefore fitting role models for the Rolex brand.
In the end and despite the popularity of the astronauts, the Space Dweller model never went into full production and, as so few examples were ever made, this very cool reminder of the 1960s ‘space race’ has become a much-coveted object of desire for Rolex collectors.
The present specimen represents a unique opportunity for collectors to own one of this rarefied model.
The Space-Dweller was made as a trial series of a small number of re-branded Explorer watches especially for the Japanese market. The name was coined to commemorate a visit by NASA’s ‘Project Mercury’ astronauts in 1963 - the astronauts were at that time considered to be the world’s greatest explorers and therefore fitting role models for the Rolex brand.
In the end and despite the popularity of the astronauts, the Space Dweller model never went into full production and, as so few examples were ever made, this very cool reminder of the 1960s ‘space race’ has become a much-coveted object of desire for Rolex collectors.
The present specimen represents a unique opportunity for collectors to own one of this rarefied model.