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拍品專文
Rare gems in the world of vintage timepieces, Rolex wristwatches with personalized dials always attract the passions of the most astute collectors. Made in exceedingly small numbers, dials featuring royal emblems or coat of arms were usually manufactured for the most important clients of Rolex, with the example of Middle-Eastern countries including the Sultanate of Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain or Saudi-Arabia. Usually presented by the government as gifts to dignitaries as token of appreciation and respect, watches displaying such rarified dials have become throughout the years grail watches rarely appearing at auction.
Previously unknown to the auction market, the present reference 1665 is bestowed with an emblem rarely seen on Rolex sports watches, the Kuwaiti coat of arms. Adopted in 1962, the emblem is composed of a golden falcon bearing a shield depicting the national flag. Displaying a traditional sailing-vessel between the wings of the falcon, the full name of the state is written at the top of the disk. Of great appeal, the timepiece is made even more important through the presence of its original guarantee, carefully kept by its owner, and stamped by Zaid Al-Sarhan & Sons, Rolex agents at Amad Street in Kuwait.
A celebrated reference, the Sea-Dweller 1665 was developed following the requirements of divers for a timepiece able to resist to important depths and saturation diving. Widely considered as amongst the most collectible timepieces of Rolex, the Sea-Dweller appeared in the late 1960s and featured a gas escape valve enabling helium to escape from the watch-case during decompression, preventing the pressure from expelling the Plexiglas. Created with different dial variations depending on the year of production, the present example is part of the reference 1665 nicknamed “Great White”, with scales and text differing from previous versions and printed entirely in white.
The present timepiece represents an extremely rare opportunity for collectors to acquire an important example of an iconic reference of the Rolex manufacture, complete with its box and original guarantee, a testimony of the longstanding relationship between Rolex and the Middle-East
Previously unknown to the auction market, the present reference 1665 is bestowed with an emblem rarely seen on Rolex sports watches, the Kuwaiti coat of arms. Adopted in 1962, the emblem is composed of a golden falcon bearing a shield depicting the national flag. Displaying a traditional sailing-vessel between the wings of the falcon, the full name of the state is written at the top of the disk. Of great appeal, the timepiece is made even more important through the presence of its original guarantee, carefully kept by its owner, and stamped by Zaid Al-Sarhan & Sons, Rolex agents at Amad Street in Kuwait.
A celebrated reference, the Sea-Dweller 1665 was developed following the requirements of divers for a timepiece able to resist to important depths and saturation diving. Widely considered as amongst the most collectible timepieces of Rolex, the Sea-Dweller appeared in the late 1960s and featured a gas escape valve enabling helium to escape from the watch-case during decompression, preventing the pressure from expelling the Plexiglas. Created with different dial variations depending on the year of production, the present example is part of the reference 1665 nicknamed “Great White”, with scales and text differing from previous versions and printed entirely in white.
The present timepiece represents an extremely rare opportunity for collectors to acquire an important example of an iconic reference of the Rolex manufacture, complete with its box and original guarantee, a testimony of the longstanding relationship between Rolex and the Middle-East