ROLEX REF. 5513 ISSUED TO THE BRITISH ROYAL NAVY IN 1975 Rolex 'Oyster Perpetual, Sumbariner, 660ft = 200m' case No.3927192 Ref. 5513. Made circa 1973, issued to the British Royal Navy in 1975, No.0552/923-7697-329/75. Fine and rare, hacking center seconds, self-winding, water-resistant, stainless steel military diver's wristwatch with fixed bar lugs. Accompanied by a laminated Rolex UK service acknowledgment receipt dated February 2008 and Rolex letter signed H. Hudson dated May 2008 confirming serial number 3927192 was supplied to the Royal Navy in 1975. | Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces

Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces

New York, Sep 30, 2015

LOT 174

ROLEX REF. 5513 ISSUED TO THE BRITISH ROYAL NAVY IN 1975 Rolex 'Oyster Perpetual, Sumbariner, 660ft = 200m' case No.3927192 Ref. 5513. Made circa 1973, issued to the British Royal Navy in 1975, No.0552/923-7697-329/75. Fine and rare, hacking center seconds, self-winding, water-resistant, stainless steel military diver's wristwatch with fixed bar lugs. Accompanied by a laminated Rolex UK service acknowledgment receipt dated February 2008 and Rolex letter signed H. Hudson dated May 2008 confirming serial number 3927192 was supplied to the Royal Navy in 1975.

USD 30,000 - 50,000

HKD 230,000 - 390,000 / CHF 29,000 - 48,000

Sold: USD 37,500

Three-body, polished and brushed, screwed-down case back with military issue numbers, the inner case back stamped with matching serial number 3927192, graduated bi-directional revolving bezel, screw-down Triplock winding crown with protective guards. Black with luminous Tritium round, triangular and baton indexes, outer minute/seconds track, circled T printed above DEPTH rating. White gold luminous Mercedes hands. Cal. 1520, rhodium-plated, 26 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, monometallic balance, shock absorber, self-compensating flat balance spring, hack mechanism.

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Dial, case and movement signed. DIAM. 40 mm. THICKNESS 14 mm. The ROLEX MILITARY SUBMARINER wristwatches issued to the BRITISH ROYAL NAVY, although very similar to the standard reference 5513, features a dial with encircled T (to indicate the use of tritium luminescent), large sword hands for extra visibility, bezel calibrated to 60 minutes, movement with hacking seconds, fixed lugs for durability, an engraved caseback with Ministry of Defence item code and issue number, along with an inner caseback stamped with the full serial number to ensure the watch and the caseback remain matched. During routine servicing, due to the unavailability of military specification replacement parts, the watches were often serviced using standard Ref. 5513 parts instead. Notably, on this present lot, the hands and bezel have been updated to civilian specification. This example is accompanied by a letter written by Henry Hudson, the head of the Rolex (UK) Service Department at the time, confirming that their internal records show that this watch had been issued to the Royal Navy.