Rolex

The Submariner model being one of the most iconic wristwatches ever made was presented by Rolex in 1953 as a diving tool watch. Throughout the years Submariner have lay the foundation of how a “sport” timepiece should be and was even commissioned by Rolex to the most extreme ventures in human history. Although not evidential the Submariner has gone through multiple face lifts from minute differences to the case, crown, bezel and dial for improving the durability of the watch. Today, collectors are starting to notice the differences and rarity of each references, and specific reference like the 6538 “Big Crown”, 5514 “Comex”, 1665 “Double red” to the very prized Military Submariner such as the present example is highly popular among vintage enthusiast.

The Military Submariner made upon special request for the British Ministry of Defense, were issued from the 1972 to 1976. As these watches were specifically made for the military, the MOD has requested the brand with specifications for a watch that would meet their requirements. The requirements would include fixed bar lugs, oversized 60-minute calibrated bezel, large sword hands, and a luminous dial with an encircled “T” indicating the use of radioactive tritium. Additionally, each watch would be uniquely engraved with numbers that can be used to identify the service code (0552), NATO code for divers watches (923-7697), issue number (853) and as well as issue year (78) of the person that watch was granted to.

Research suggest that there is a total of 3 references available for the Military Submariner, 5513, 5517/5513 (double reference) and 5517, and 4 different dial variations available, the non-serif dial, serif dial, smudge dial and lastly maxi dial. The present example reference 5517 with maxi dial is one of the most infrequent example of the Military Submariner to appear in the secondary market today. To the best of our knowledge, with only 1500 examples of the Military Submariner ever made and less than a third of them remains, this is a rare opportunity for anyone to pursue such a fine example.

The present lot is what is known as a “Full Spec” 5517 Military Submariner featuring all the requirements the MOD set out to Rolex, along with a rare matching caseback. The watch also features a MK1 Maxi dial produced only for a short time between 1976-1977, named for its larger lume plots which make this watch all the more striking. In addition the case remains full and carries strong factory proportions not often seen in these issued watches. The watch was gifted to the consignors in the early 2000’s by the original owner and is now being offered for sale. This is a fantastic opportunity to add a fantastically preserved “Full Spec” Milsub to any serious vintage collection.