Rolex Lady Oyster Perpetual Date, c. 1997

Dealer description — Analog/Shift

Why We Love It It is perhaps one of the greatest injustices in horology that women's wristwatches have not historically received the same respect as their larger cased counterparts, resulting in far fewer executions worth collecting. This is truly a shame, and probably one of the reasons why horologically-minded ladies have taken to wearing men's watches during the past decade. It seems that just now brands are getting the memo, and a few manufactures (notably Vacheron Constantin and Parmigiani Fleurier) have begun producing proper ladies watches again - you know, those ones that eschew faux-gold, not-so-precious stones and batteries for the real thing: mechanical, wearable art. Long overdue. Still, when it comes to vintage options for ladies, the pickings can be slim, quite the opposite from men's. Fortunately there are things like this to soften the blow: A Rolex Lady Oyster Perpetual Date. This particular example dates to circa 1997 and remains entirely unworn with a flawless stainless case, smooth bezel, and an outstanding grey 'tuxedo' dial with warmly aged Tritium indices and handset. It comes fitted on a solid link Jubilee bracelet and comes complete with a fully intact factory green case back sticker and punched papers from Little Switzerland in Aruba. Checking all of the boxes as its larger brothers, this lovely piece can easily be w orn as a dress watch or a demure daily driver for the lady who knows what proper watches are all about . The Oyster Perpetual Story In Rolex's impressive history, the brand has released a veritable arsenal of models that have become classics. Many of these bear the moniker "Oyster Perpetual." While this name is used on a particular model line, it also finds itself used widely across Rolex’s varied collections. This signifies two things: first, that the watch will have the trademark waterproof Rolex Oyster case. And secondly, that the movement beating inside that Oyster case will be one of Rolex's famed Perpetual (automatic winding) movements. Rolex first patented the Oyster case in 1925, but the quest for a waterproof and dust-proof case began shortly before the First World War. The cases of the Great War and the early 1920s came in two or three pieces with an inner case that shielded the movement (then a manual-wind movement) from the wet, dusty conditions on the battlefield. The Oyster case of 1925 represented the culmination of ten years of development. As with the Oyster case, the Perpetual movement saw many iterations before finally being perfected in the 1930s. Rolex's first automatic movement quietly debuted in 1931, and was met with some consternation from purists who decried the "extreme novelty" of a self-winding watch. Nevertheless, Rolex could see that the future lay in the Perpetual movement. They continued to develop and improve it over the years, establishing a line of dressier watches bearing the “Oyster Perpetual” nomenclature that would stand as an alternative to Rolex's sportier models. These models run the gamut of size, casing material and dial design, and offer a tremendous value for buyers. Meant to be worn every day, the Oyster Perpetual combines elegant looks with rugged dependability, and are very much the backbone of the Rolex brand.