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拍品专文
One of the rarest and most difficult to find of all vintage Rolex tool watches, this wonderfully untouched reference 6541 is, to the best of our knowledge, fresh to the market and a remarkable discovery being in honest condition and is even accompanied by what is almost certainly the original expanding steel Oyster bracelet. Made in 1958, it features a slightly ‘tropical’ honeycomb dial that has the effect of sublimely softening the black colour, the non-luminous hour indexes are extremely well preserved with only the lightest spotting visible under magnification. In an equally untouched state are the non-luminous hour and minute hands and of course the iconic “lightning bolt” centre seconds hand. The case with original rotating bezel and insert is refreshingly unrestored whilst exhibiting the genuine and expected signs of normal use as a serious tool watch over the last 65 years.
This remarkable survival of an undisturbed Milgauss 6541 is almost unheard of and represents the all too rare opportunity to acquire this most elusive of vintage Rolex. Without any cosmetic enhancement, its naturally aged and superb dial and honest case and bracelet with 'big logo' clasp are a collector’s dream come true.
The Rolex Milgauss
The Milgauss was advertised as “designed to meet the demands of the scientific community working around electromagnetic fields”. The first of its kind, it is capable of withstanding magnetic fields of up to 1,000 gauss and became known for being worn by scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva. At the time of its launch the ‘Milgauss’ was regarded a marvel of horological engineering, functioning perfectly when subject to a magnetic field of 1000 Oersted, its guaranteed limit, but remaining accurate even at 5000 Oersted. The influence of electromagnetic radiation on the balance causing a loss of accuracy was reduced by using the principles of a ‘Faraday Cage’, i.e. by placing the movement in an iron inner case shielding the movement. The Faraday Cage is attributed to the physicist Michael Faraday who, in 1863, built a room coated with metal foil and allowed high-voltage discharges from an electrostatic generator to strike its outside. He then used an electroscope to show that there was no excess electric charge on the inside of the room's walls.
The so-called ‘honeycomb’ dials, consisting of two cross aluminium layers, protected the watches further against electromagnetic radiation. The most distinguishing visual feature of the reference 6541 Milgauss is its ‘lightning bolt’ centre seconds hand. Research shows that all the examples of reference 6541 that have appeared publicly have case serial numbers starting with 412, which suggests that over the roughly four years of production, quantities were extremely limited. The reference has since been recognised by collectors as one of the great rarities among all vintage Rolex steel tool watches.
Reference 6541 was produced for four years only before being replaced by reference 1019, featuring a blank bezel, straight sweep seconds hand and a calibre 1580 movement. The Milgauss ceased production altogether in 1988, taking almost a decade off before coming back to life in 2007 in the guise of ref. 116400.
This remarkable survival of an undisturbed Milgauss 6541 is almost unheard of and represents the all too rare opportunity to acquire this most elusive of vintage Rolex. Without any cosmetic enhancement, its naturally aged and superb dial and honest case and bracelet with 'big logo' clasp are a collector’s dream come true.
The Rolex Milgauss
The Milgauss was advertised as “designed to meet the demands of the scientific community working around electromagnetic fields”. The first of its kind, it is capable of withstanding magnetic fields of up to 1,000 gauss and became known for being worn by scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva. At the time of its launch the ‘Milgauss’ was regarded a marvel of horological engineering, functioning perfectly when subject to a magnetic field of 1000 Oersted, its guaranteed limit, but remaining accurate even at 5000 Oersted. The influence of electromagnetic radiation on the balance causing a loss of accuracy was reduced by using the principles of a ‘Faraday Cage’, i.e. by placing the movement in an iron inner case shielding the movement. The Faraday Cage is attributed to the physicist Michael Faraday who, in 1863, built a room coated with metal foil and allowed high-voltage discharges from an electrostatic generator to strike its outside. He then used an electroscope to show that there was no excess electric charge on the inside of the room's walls.
The so-called ‘honeycomb’ dials, consisting of two cross aluminium layers, protected the watches further against electromagnetic radiation. The most distinguishing visual feature of the reference 6541 Milgauss is its ‘lightning bolt’ centre seconds hand. Research shows that all the examples of reference 6541 that have appeared publicly have case serial numbers starting with 412, which suggests that over the roughly four years of production, quantities were extremely limited. The reference has since been recognised by collectors as one of the great rarities among all vintage Rolex steel tool watches.
Reference 6541 was produced for four years only before being replaced by reference 1019, featuring a blank bezel, straight sweep seconds hand and a calibre 1580 movement. The Milgauss ceased production altogether in 1988, taking almost a decade off before coming back to life in 2007 in the guise of ref. 116400.