Rolex Day-Date 36 Yellow Gold Champagne Diamond 128238 2024

Reference 128238 is the Day-Date in its original 36 mm case, and after a decade of 40 mm being treated as the default it has quietly become the more interesting of the two to wear. On most wrists it sits flat where the 40 perches, and the proportions of the dial furniture were drawn for this diameter in the first place.

The Day-Date earned its reputation on one idea: the day of the week written out in full at twelve o'clock, in words, changing instantaneously at midnight along with the date. Rolex built the model around that disc in 1956 and spent the first fifty years of its life making it at this size.

The champagne dial here is set with diamonds, and the setting is not uniform — round brilliants mark eight of the hours, with baguette-cut stones at six and nine. It is a small asymmetry and it does a lot of work, giving the dial two axes to read by instead of a ring of identical points. Champagne against yellow gold is a tonal rather than a contrasting choice, so the diamonds are what supply the light.

Calibre 3255, self-winding, approximately 70 hours of power reserve, certified to minus two and plus two seconds a day after casing. Waterproof to 100 metres, 36 mm in 18 ct yellow gold with a monobloc middle case and screw-down back, fluted bezel, President bracelet with concealed folding Crownclasp.

Mint, 2024, offered as a full set. The 36 is where the second hand market still offers real value against the 40, and this is a clean example of it.

Every watch is authenticated by an independent watchmaker before it changes hands, never by us. Viewing by appointment at our Collins Street boutique in Melbourne, insured delivery Australia-wide. We buy Rolex outright and source specific references on request.