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ESTATE
1948 Rolex Oyster Perpetual Wrist Watch
Solid 14k Yellow Gold
From an ESTATE on the Treasure Coast of Florida.
Superb Vintage 1948 Rolex Oyster
Perpetual - Automatic - Solid 14k Yellow Gold
A perfect addition for a discernning watch collector, or a superb choice
for daily wear.
About the Rolex Oyster. One of the signature design features of Rolex watches is the screw-down crown and water tight cases. It was the development of the screw-down crown by Rolex in 1926, which gave them the final solution to the problem of leaky watch cases. The first ever water and dust resistant case was made by Rolex and named Oyster. As the Rolex Oyster was a sensational watchmaking achievement, the company publicized this feature in advertisements. It is one thing to claim a watch is waterproof. It is quite another to prove it. In 1927 a Rolex Oyster crossed the English Channel, worn by a young English swimmer named Mercedes Gleitze. Her swim lasted over 10 hours and the watch remained in perfect working order at the end of it.
In 1931, Rolex took the next step in the advancement of its watches with the development of a self winding movement that would eliminate the need for manual daily winding. This style of movement would also eliminate the problem of crowns not being resealed in a moment of forgetfulness when winding. Rolex patented this automatic rotary winding mechanism which it named 'The Rolex Oyster Perpetual'. Only after 1948, when the original patent came to an end, were other competitors permitted to introduce their own automatic systems.
Rolex does not publish official information about the age of their watches, thus world's avid watch collectors have, over the years, gathered and then pooled lists of serial numbers, from which an approximate age may be estimated. Different lists exist of course, but there are sufficient similarities to permit a rough estimation of age. That information, coupled with history from the estate itself, allows us to reasonably date this handsome watch to approximately early 1948.
The model number of this watch is 6551, identifying this watch as a mid-size Rolex Oyster Perpetual. The bracelet is ORIGINAL to this watch. The serial number is 557XXX. The solid 14k yellow gold bracelet links are tight, the watch was fully serviced in 2012. and it is keeping perfect time. The dial is also original. The condition of the watch is amazingly good. The watch crystal is new.
This is a gentleman's mid-size watch,
which means it is equally appealing to women. Although the original
owner aged gracefully, he did grow slimmer, and over the course of time,
the bracelet was adjusted to fit his trim 6" wrist. The
links which had been removed from his various watch bracelets over the
years appear to have become separated from his watch collection. As
such, this handsome watch will fit the wrist of a slim gentleman, and
it will look extremely chic (and easy to read) on a woman's wrist.
World War II officially ended in August of 1945.
1948 was the third and peak year of the postwar speculative boom.
It was an interesting time in American History.
Science:
George A. Gamow (US) put forth the "Big Bang" theory to explain
the origin of the universe.
Dennis Gabors of England developed the theoretical basis for holography.
Edwin Land (US) invented the Polaroid Land camera.
Physicist Richard Feynman and Julian Schwinger (US) developed a theory
of quantum electrodynamics.
Norbert Wiener of MIT coined the term cybernetics.
Pulitzer Prizes
Fiction: Tales of the South Pacific, James A. Michener
Drama: A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams
Academy Award, Best Picture: Gentleman's Agreement (Twentieth Century-Fox)
Columbia Records introduced the 33 1/3 LP ("long
playing") record.
It allowed listeners to enjoy an unprecedented 25 minutes of music per
side,
compared to the four minutes per side of the standard 78 rpm record.
Kentucky Derby Champion
Citation
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the state of Oklahoma
must admit Ada Louis Sipuel Fischer,
a black woman, to the University of Oklahoma law school.
The Land Rover ( Land Rover Series I ) was shown for the first time at the Amsterdam car Show,
The United Nations General Assembly meeting in Paris,
France adopted the
Universal Declaration on Human Rights which took nearly three years
in prepare .
NASCAR held its first race for modified stock cars on a 3.2 mile-course at Daytona Beach
It was a very good year.
Make this stunning bit of history your own.
A short term layaway may be possible.
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