Lot 18

Rolex

Panna-Rail-Dial Explorer II

A rare and beautiful wristwatch with cream-coloured dial, date and 24h indicator on the bezel

Sold

This Explorer II stands out because of the marvellous and rare Panna-Rail dial. In our opinion the case is unpolished and the caseback still shows remains of the green Rolex sticker. The bezel has been worked on, and some of the numerals show some minor loss of colour. The movement starts up immediately.
Due to the present silver balance spring we recommend a service nevertheless. The watch comes with box and punched original certificate, issued by Mohammed Rasool Khoory & Sons, the official Rolex dealer in Abu Dhabi, on January 15th, 1987.

Since its introduction the Explorer II reference 16550 with tapered 24-hour bezel and a large luminous arrow has certainly lived up to its name - it was part of the standard equipment of several highly challenging expeditions late in the 20th century, such as the GEOMAG North expedition.
The Explorer II models - particularly those with white dials from the three year pre-r series - have become favourites among collectors of Rolex sports watches. Due to a flaw in the colour used for the dials, they began to darken somewhat with time, many of them developing a striking patina; hues are ivory, pale beige or even cream such as this piece. Its Italian fans have lovingly named it the "panna dial".