Rolex Daytona 'Zenith' Two-Tone, c. 1995

Dealer description — Analog/Shift

Why We Love It For all of you who think owning a Rolex Daytona is out of reach, we’d recommend having a close look at the Reference 16523. Introduced in 1988, the Reference 16523 is a so-called “Zenith” Daytona, powered by the legendary El Primero Automatic Chronograph Movement, and features a full-size Rolesor (Two-Tone) case and bracelet. While Two-Tone can be a polarizing style, we would argue there are few watches that work better in bicolor than the Cosmograph Daytona. Offered with a variety of different dials, including slate grey, black, and white, these models are lagging far behind their all-steel counterparts - offering tremendous value for a high-style watch with a precious metal element! This particular 16523 dates to circa 1995 and features a black gloss dial with Tritium luminous plots and a matching handset that have developed a rich creamy patina throughout. The case, bezel and bracelet are in excellent, near mint condition showing only light handling wear. This stunner is a true time capsule and comes complete with its inner and outer boxes, books, and blank papers from Albriton's Jewelers in Mississippi. It even retains its factory green sticker on the case back and an inner bracelet protective sticker as well! This is a collector-quality example with great patina - don't miss it! The Daytona Story The Rolex Daytona. King of the chronographs! Rolex first started experimenting making chronographs in the 1930s – first known as Cosmographs – which set the mold for what would ultimately evolve into the single best-known chronograph in the world. These early watches, like many chronographs of the period, had monochromatic dials and a tachymeter ring printed on the outer edge of the dial. The design of the Cosmograph gradually changed its dial configuration (a shift from monochrome to the "panda" color schemes now closely associated with the model), and a relocation of the tachymetric scale to the bezel, which made it a clear sportsman's watch. In 1964 Rolex added the name Daytona to the model (taken from the 24 Hours of Daytona Race which Rolex started sponsoring in 1962), and its motorsports association was cemented. The earliest Daytonas relied on that well known manually-wound workhorse movement - the Valjoux 72. But in 1988 Rolex released a Daytona using Zenith's El Primero movement, making the Cosmograph Daytona now worthy of the appellation "Oyster Perpetual." These "Zenith" Daytonas have gained serious traction over the past decade on the vintage chronograph market, with potential to appreciate in value to lofty heights. Still, Rolex has never been the sort of brand to rely on off the shelf parts for long, so when the Reference 116520 debuted in 2000 at Basel World, it made headlines. This led to the eventual introduction of the current production model, Reference 116500LN, fitted with a black ceramic bezel that is arguably the most in-demand sports watch on the planet. Whether your taste runs to Pre-Daytona Cosmographs, hand-cranking Valjoux 72 powered models from the 1960s-1980s, or an Automatic Zenith or In-House model, a Rolex Daytona is quite simply a world-class chronograph with a righteous amount of pomp and circumstance justifiably included.