Rolex Day-Date Ref. 1803/9 - Sunburst Silver Dial

When the Day-Date was released in 1956, Rolex had made numerous attempts to capture the market with more complicated timepieces such as the Ref. 6036, the Ref. 8171, and the Ref. 6062, but it seemed like buyers were not particularly fond of complicated Rolexes. All of that changed when President Lyndon B. Johnson was spotted wearing one Rolex in particular: a Day-Date. The model has since become known worldwide as ‘The President’ and as a symbol of success and prestige. Simply put, this one stuck. The Day-Date was available for many years on a matching solid gold bracelet (called a 'President' bracelet), but also on a leather strap like the example that we have here. This Reference 1803 dates to circa 1967 and is constructed out of solid white gold. It comes to us with an excellent, gently previously polished case with a seemingly unpolished 'fluted' white gold bezel. Inside, the silver dial remains in simply fantastic condition, with a vibrant sunburst surface, applied indices, and fully-intact Tritium plots with a matching handset. Especially when fitted to a leather strap, this 'elevated' piece remains very much under-the-radar. If you know, you know.