This week, Rolex surprised everyone with a new release. The fact that the Crown randomly dropped something in the middle of September was already news enough, but the watch that was unveiled only furthered the frenzy. The Padellone is a short-lived model from the 1950s that received its name—Italian for “frying pan”—for its big-for-its-era proportions. Now, a new spin on the beloved vintage piece is back as part of the brand’s dressy Perpetual collection. Such an unexpected move got me dreaming bigger about what else Rolex might revive from the archives.
Today’s Rolex is known largely for its extremely focused catalog of sport watches—tentpole icons like the Submariner, Daytona, and Oyster Perpetual. Historically, though, the brand’s offerings were looser and more varied, both in terms of models and the types of techniques and finishes it used.
“Imagine Rolex bringing back bark or [hammered] Morellis finishing or, better yet, developing an entirely new case finish,” says Cam Barr, the founder and CEO of Craft + Tailored. “Those kinds of small, slightly eccentric details are part of what makes vintage Rolex so much fun to collect, and I’d love to see some of that experimentation find its way back into the modern catalog.”
I spoke with eight Watch Illuminati members about the models they’d most like Rolex to revive.
Rolex Chronograph Dato-Compax “Jean-Claude Killy” ref. 6236
Phillips
This was the answer I expected to hear most from experts. Rolex made the Dato-Compax from the late ’40s to the early ’60s before the Daytona took over as the sole chronograph in the current catalog. Like the old Padellone, the Dato-Compax featured a triple calendar—which displays the day, date, and month—but it also stacked a chronograph function on top of that. “It was the most complicated production Rolex movement of the 20th century, with vintage examples being extremely sought after,” says Paul Boutros, the deputy chairman and head of Americas for Phillips auction house.
Jean-Claude Killy, the gold-medal-winning Olympian skier, was known for wearing a pretty version of the watch with a white dial and an outer track of blue numerals that represented the date. Today, the JCKs are highly sought after by collectors.
Rolex Milgauss ref. 6541
Iconic Watch Company
