99th Auction
2019/5/11
Lot 264
Rolex "Oyster Perpetual Milgauss, Superlative Chronometer officially certified", Movement No. 008193, Case No. 1636662, Ref. 1019, Cal. 1580, 37 mm, circa 1967
An automatic vintage wristwatch
Case: steel, polished bezel, screw back ref. 1019 II/67, antimagnetic protection cap, screwed "Twinlock" winding crown, steel "Oyster" bracelet ref. 78360 with endlinks stamped 580, deployant clasp VE, bracelet length 140 mm, total length 200 mm. Dial: silvered.
The movement number of this watch does not have the "M" prefix, the bridge is correctly marked with the calibre designation 1580 - it is an unusual signature but nevertheless a commonly accepted and original label.
The name "Milgauss" is a combination of "Mil" (a thousand), and "Gauss", (the unit of the measurement of magnetism). Normal movements can take up to 70-80 Gauss; anything higher comprimises their working order. Good watches usually resist magnetic fields of 60 to 70 Gauss; the 'Milgauss', however, keeps its astounding precision in magnetic fields up to 1000 Gauss. The watch's dial, ring and cover of its movement are made in soft iron forming a Faraday cage - Rolex managed to create a brilliant solution to the problem. Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855) was a German astronomer, mathematician and physicist; he published several important works on celestial mechanics, geodesy, magnetism, electromagnetism and optics. The English chemist and physicist Michael Faraday (1791-1867) was known for his groundbreaking experiments in electricity and magnetism. Many of his concepts were derived directly from his experiments (such as lines of magnetic force) and became common ideas in modern physics. Gauss - a magnetic induction unit, symbol 'g' in the C.G.S. system.
A similar watch is described and illustrated in "Rolex, Collecting Wristwatches", by Osvaldo Patrizzi, 2001 Edition, pp. 352, 353.
An automatic vintage wristwatch
Case: steel, polished bezel, screw back ref. 1019 II/67, antimagnetic protection cap, screwed "Twinlock" winding crown, steel "Oyster" bracelet ref. 78360 with endlinks stamped 580, deployant clasp VE, bracelet length 140 mm, total length 200 mm. Dial: silvered.
The movement number of this watch does not have the "M" prefix, the bridge is correctly marked with the calibre designation 1580 - it is an unusual signature but nevertheless a commonly accepted and original label.
The name "Milgauss" is a combination of "Mil" (a thousand), and "Gauss", (the unit of the measurement of magnetism). Normal movements can take up to 70-80 Gauss; anything higher comprimises their working order. Good watches usually resist magnetic fields of 60 to 70 Gauss; the 'Milgauss', however, keeps its astounding precision in magnetic fields up to 1000 Gauss. The watch's dial, ring and cover of its movement are made in soft iron forming a Faraday cage - Rolex managed to create a brilliant solution to the problem. Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855) was a German astronomer, mathematician and physicist; he published several important works on celestial mechanics, geodesy, magnetism, electromagnetism and optics. The English chemist and physicist Michael Faraday (1791-1867) was known for his groundbreaking experiments in electricity and magnetism. Many of his concepts were derived directly from his experiments (such as lines of magnetic force) and became common ideas in modern physics. Gauss - a magnetic induction unit, symbol 'g' in the C.G.S. system.
A similar watch is described and illustrated in "Rolex, Collecting Wristwatches", by Osvaldo Patrizzi, 2001 Edition, pp. 352, 353.
Sold
estimated
18.000—25.000 €
Price realized
20.000 €