In collaboration with Berry Harleman, Watch expert
Rolex is one of the most well-known and prestigious brands of watches. One of its most legendary watches is the Rolex Oyster, which was the first 'waterproof' and dustproof wristwatch ever. Let’s take a look at how Rolex changed the timepiece industry forever in 1926 with the Oyster watch.
The quest for precision
Rolex founder, Hans Wildorf
In 1905, at the young age of 24 years old, Hans Wildorf founded a company in London, specialising in the distribution of timepieces. At that time, wristwatches weren’t very reliable, but he believed that they could become both elegant and precise. His mission to perfect quality of the movements began and in 1910, the Rolex watch was the first wristwatch in the world to receive the Swiss Certificate of Chronometric Precision.
It’s all in the name
In 1926, the first waterproof and dustproof watch was launched, under the name ’Oyster’. It featured a hermetically sealed case which protects the watch from dust and water, just like the shell of the mollusc protects the oyster from hazardous situations. Rolex’s crown logo was not introduced until the early 1930s, which is why the early Oyster models don’t feature the logo yet. The font and overall style of the watch however, have not changed much over time however.
A testing time
Mercedes Gleitze wears a rolex Oyster while swimming the English Channel
The Rolex Oyster was not just able to be taken into the water, but also resist a range of liquids and particles, such as dust, from entering the case. All elements were screwed-down. There was still some skepticism about the whole ‘waterproof’-part at first, but all disbelief vanished after 1927 when a young English swimmer swam across the English Channel wearing a Rolex Oyster watch. Her name was Mercedes Gleitze, and it took her over ten hours to complete, but the watch was still working perfectly at the end of her journey.
A familiar look
Notice the similarities?
If the shape of the original Rolex Oyster looks strangely familiar to you, then you’re not wrong. Rolex developed a diving watch for Panerai, which has become iconic over time. If you put the modern Panerai next to the old Oyster, you can actually see the similarities between the two.
Winding by Wearing
The Rolex Oyster today
Rolex invented the world’s first self-winding mechanism with a Perpetual rotor in 1931. Thus, the Oyster Perpetual was born. These days it’s on the dial of every Rolex watch sold. Before this invention, the crown needed to be unscrewed to wind the watch manually, opening a small area of the case, which could be a risk to the durability and water resistance of the watch. Automatic winding solved this problem. The Perpetual rotor allowed the watch to be wound, simply by wearing it.
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It’s undeniably certain that Rolex is one of the most innovative watch companies in the world, raising the bar for watches throughout history. In our weekly Rolex auctions you can find over a hundred Rolexes, both vintage and newer and even customised models. If you happen to own a few Rolexes yourself which you would like to sell, then you can register as a seller here.