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Tudor Blue Snowflake Submariner (Ref. 7021/0) "Roulette Date", 1969 — view 1 of 6
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Wristwatches · Wristwatch

Tudor Blue Snowflake Submariner (Ref. 7021/0) "Roulette Date", 1969

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Tudor (maker)
Date
1969
Country of origin
Switzerland
Object type
Wristwatch
Stock no.
TDRSUB70210
Credit line
Dealer listing, Craft & Tailored (TDRSUB70210)
Catalogue title (original)
1969 Tudor Blue Snowflake Submariner (Ref. 7021/0) "Roulette Date" (English)

View the source record (dealer listing) ↗ (opens another website in a new tab)Suggest a correction

Record summary

Catalogued by Craft & Tailored (dealer), Los Angeles (stock number TDRSUB70210), this is a wristwatch by Tudor, made in Switzerland, dated 1969. The Atlas places it in the Quartz Revolution period (1969 – 1990) of its Wristwatches collection. The record is illustrated with 6 photographs.

Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.

Catalogue description

Dealer description — Craft & Tailored

The Tudor “Snowflake” is the nickname given to the Tudor Submariners with distinctive features such as the square hour markers and unique snowflake hands that were introduced by Rolex/Tudor to increase visibility in low light conditions. In production from 1968 to the mid-1980s, dial variants are commonly found in black and blue and can feature a date complication. However, there is more to the Tudor’s Snowflake Submariner line than its characteristic visual features. The Tudor Snowflake Submariners, like the other Submariners produced by Rolex and Tudor, have a long-standing history and were supplied to military forces including the U.S. Navy and the Marine Nationale (French Navy). Marine Nationale Diver Wearing Turdor Submariner "Snowflake"7016/0 The second-generation Tudor Submariners marked the watchmaker’s transition from caliber 390 movements produced by Parmigiani Fleurier SA (Fleurier) to movements produced by Swiss watchmaker ETA which made the Tudor Snowflake Submariners the first Tudor watches to use these modified ETA movements. This specific example would make a nice addition to a growing collection or be a great first piece as it retains the classic and timeless look of the Submariner while being unique and eye-catching as a result of the distinguishing dial and hand configuration. Stock # TTDRSUB70210 Brand Tudor Style Submariner Model 7021/0 Serial XXXX Size Men's Material Stainless Steel Dial Blue "Aged" Millimeters 40 Bracelet 2pc Handmade Leather Strap CASE & BRACELET The very lightly polished case retains thick and symmetrical lugs that show almost no signs of use. The original "fat-font" blue bezel insert is in exceptional original condition showing no major wear or age, the insert retains its tritium pearl at the 12 o'clock position which matches the dial patina nicely. The case retains its original Rolex signed 7mm twin-lock crown. The case back retains all of its original factory marking in great condition. The watch will come supplied on a 2pc handmade leather strap. DIAL & HANDS The matte blue dial is simply stunning, showing a consistent and uniform topographical patina to the dial that is sometimes seen in Snowflake dials from this era. All of the text and printing of the dial remains fully present and in excellent condition. The tritium lume plots have aged to a robust yellow and orange coloration and display no visible degradation when inspected under U.V. light. The original Snowflake hands appear to have been professionally restored with tritium earlier in the watch's life and exhibit a very minor crack in the hour hand lume. The original "roulette" date wheel is in excellent condition. ACCESSORIES

Historical context

Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)

Seiko's Astron begins mass quartz timekeeping; traditional industries contract sharply.

Quartz and digital watches transformed the market after 1969. Swiss employment collapsed, Japanese and Hong Kong production soared, and the Swatch (1983) helped the Swiss industry recover; mechanical watches survived as luxury goods.

Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Modern Mechanical Horology

Atlas type guide

Dive and water-resistant watches

Keeping water and dust out of a wristwatch was a long-standing challenge. Rolex's screw-down Oyster case (1926) and Omega's Marine (1932) were landmarks; in the early 1950s Blancpain's Fifty Fathoms and Rolex's Submariner defined the professional dive watch with rotating bezels for timing dives, luminous dials and high water resistance. The ISO 6425 standard (1982) later codified what a 'diver's watch' must do.

Dive watches became icons of post-war design and exploration, and their evolution — helium escape valves, ceramic bezels, saturation-diving depth ratings — records the history of underwater work.

What to look for

  • Unidirectional or bidirectional rotating bezel with minute markings.
  • Screw-down crown and case back; depth rating printed on the dial.
  • Luminous hands and markers (radium before c. 1960, tritium c. 1960–1998, then Super-LumiNova).
  • Reference numbers on the case between the lugs or inside the back.

Dating clues

  • Screw-down Oyster cases: from 1926.
  • Professional dive watches: from 1953.
  • Tritium 'T' marks on dials: c. 1960–1998.

General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.

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