"Rolex Watch History and Innovations"
Rolex watches are considered status symbols by many.
BusinessWeek magazine ranks Rolex 1st on its 2007 annual list of the 100 most important global brands, top among all watchmakers.
Contrary to popular belief, Hans Wilsdorf was neither Swiss, nor a watchmaker.
They originally imported Hermann Aegler's Swiss movements to England and placed them in quality cases made by Dennison and others.
The earliest watches from the firm of Wilsdorf and Davis are usually marked ""W&D"" - inside the caseback only.
The origin of the name is obscure.
Another is that the name was chosen to indicate movement when spoken in English.
Wilsdorf wanted his watches to be affordable, but taxes and export duties on the case metals (silver and gold) were driving costs up.
The company name Rolex was officially registered on 15 November, 1915.
Wilsdorf was said to desire his watch brand's name to be easily pronounceable in any language.
It was later changed to Montres Rolex, SA and finally Rolex, SA.
According to foundation documentation, the Rolex SA company can never be sold, nor traded on any stock market.
To date, Rolex still holds the record for the most certified chronometer movements in the category of wristwatches.
Although Rolex has made very few quartz models for its Oyster line, the company's engineers were instrumental in design and implementation of the technology during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Consequently, after five years of research, design, and development, Rolex engineering efforts finally culminated in the ""clean-slate"" 5035/5055 movement that would eventually power the Rolex Oysterquartz - arguably the finest quartz movement that has ever been made.
This not only made watch-winding unnecessary, but eliminated the problem of over-winding a watch and harming its mechanism.
Wilsdorf even went so far as to have a specially made Rolex watch attached to the side of the Trieste bathyscaphe, which went to the bottom of the Mariana Trench.
This was confirmed by a telegram sent to Rolex the following day saying ""Am happy to confirm that even at 11,000 meters your watch is as precise as on the surface.
Rolex has also made a reputation in watches suitable for the extremes of deep-sea diving, aviation and mountain climbing.
This watch featured a helium release valve, co-invented with Swiss watchmaker Doxa, to release helium gas build-up during decompression.
The Explorer and Explorer II were developed specifically for explorers who would navigate rough terrain - such as the world famous Everest Expeditions.
In the early EON production Bond films, Commander Bond wore a
Rolex Submariner.
This is due in part to
Omega being open to jointly promote their association with the films' producers.
When a body was found in the English channel in 1996 by a fisherman who caught the body, and the 4.
Since the Rolex movement had a serial number and was engraved with special markings every time it was serviced, British police traced the service records from Rolex, and Ronald Joseph Platt was identified as the owner of the watch and the victim of the murder.
Rolex Watch models
Rolex SA has three watch lines: Oyster Perpetual, Professional and Cellini.
Dealer waiting lists can run from three to seven years and there are reports of collectors paying up to $15,000 for the privilege of owning this exclusive watch, though it is not uncommon for jewellers to rake up the profits themselves by buying the watches and selling it on, hence it is rumored that Rolex has dropped the infamous waiting list.
Rolex ""dressy"" watches are from their Cellini line.
It was established by Rolex founder, Hans Wilsdorf, in 1946.
Rolex is the largest manufacturer of Swiss made certified chronometers.
Rolex counterfeits
Like many high-priced, brand-name watches, Rolex watches are one of the most counterfeited brands of watches available and can be found illegally being sold on the street and the internet.
By some accounts, over 75% of all replica watches produced annually are copies of Rolex Oyster Perpetual designs.
