Lot 132

Rolex

Prince Brancard

A rare double-branded vintage wristwatch made in observatory quality and delivered to the Swiss jeweller Türler in Zurich

This 18 K gold Rolex Prince is outstandingly well preserved. Parts of the case have taken on a beautiful rainbow-coloured patina, showing that the watch has hardly been worn in recent decades. The matt gilt dial is charmingly aged that make the shine of the applied golden numbers, indexes and hands all the more striking. In addition, this timepiece has the double signature coveted by Rolex aficionados, making it a trouvaille for any ambitious collector.

One of the most elegant amongst the Rolex shaped watches is certainly the "Prince Brancard", reference 1490. It has a rectangular shape with flared sides and a slightly curved back, so that a better fit to the wrist is guaranteed. In addition to their shape the main difference between the Rolex Prince watches and most other watches of this time is the Prince's duo-dial design, which means the hours and minutes are at the top and the seconds are at the bottom. Because of this feature the watches were also knows as "Doctors's Watches" - the separation of hours and seconds allowed precise timing of respiration and pulse. The Rolex Prince watches were designed in 9 K, 14 K and 18 K, white, yellow and pink gold as well as in steel, silver and platinum - combinations of these metals such as steel and gold for example were also made.