Rare original Rolex “Deep Sea Special” appears at Phillips auction in November

This Rolex “Deep Sea Special” is the grandfather of modern Submariners and Sea-Dwellers. It was once tied to the outside of a submarine and dived into the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, which is more than 10,000 meters (10,916 meters).

In 1953, Rolex created the “Deep Sea Special” experimental prototype watch for the most thrilling submarine adventure in human history. It finally succeeded in 1960 and set a deep diving record in watch history. In the following years, Rolex produced a series of commemorative watches, including the 1965 No. 35 “Deep Sea Special” gold and steel deep-sea diving watch that was auctioned this time. Only 5 “Deep Sea Special” have ever been publicly sold, and most of the others have been included in museum collections.

Because every square centimeter of the bottom of the Challenger Deep is subject to about one ton of pressure, the “Deep Sea Special” has a very thick and full bubble mirror to prevent it from bursting. Its appearance is very special, and more importantly, it has a representative position in the history of human exploration and the development of watches.