Timeline / The first day-date wristwatch
The first day-date wristwatch
The Rolex Day-Date of 1956 was the first wristwatch to show the day spelled out in full and the date, each in its own window.
- The need
- Reading both the day and the date at a glance, without decoding an abbreviation.
- Made by
- Rolex. References 6510 and 6511.
- What was new
- The day written in full in an arched window at twelve and the date in a window at three, on a waterproof, self-winding chronometer.
- Worth knowing
- Offered only in gold or platinum, on a bracelet later called the President. The day was available in many languages.
Historian’s noteEarlier calendar watches, Rolex’s own among them, already spelled the day out. The first here is the combination with a date window.
SourcesRolex
Suggest a correction
Thank you. Your note has reached the editor.