Reference:6205: Difference between revisions
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{{DISPLAYTITLE:Rolex 6205 Submariner}} | |||
{{#seo: | {{#seo: | ||
|title=Rolex 6205 | |title=Rolex Submariner 6205 (1953–1957) — Production & Dial Guide | Rolexopedia | ||
|description=The 6205 is | |description=The 6205 is an early small-crown Submariner from 1954–55, with clean-dial pencil-hand and Submariner-signed Mercedes-hand examples. | ||
|keywords=Rolex, 6205, Submariner, specifications, reference guide | |keywords=Rolex, 6205, Submariner, specifications, reference guide | ||
|image=Ref 6205 hero.webp | |image=Ref 6205 hero.webp | ||
|image_alt=Rolex Submariner Ref. 6205 | |image_alt=Rolex Submariner Ref. 6205 | ||
|type= | |type=Article | ||
|og_type=article | |og_type=article | ||
|published_time=2026-04-14T16:13:30Z | |published_time=2026-04-14T16:13:30Z | ||
|modified_time=2026- | |modified_time=2026-08-04T00:13:41Z | ||
|robots=index,follow,max-image-preview:large | |robots=index,follow,max-image-preview:large | ||
}} | }} | ||
<small>[[Reference:submariner|Submariner]] | <small>[[Reference:submariner|Submariner]] › '''6205'''</small> | ||
<div class="rp-lead"> | |||
[[File:Ref 6205 hero.webp|thumb|center|640px|alt=Rolex 6205 Submariner|Rolex 6205 Submariner]] | |||
</div> | |||
The 6205 is the second small-crown Submariner and | The 6205 is the second small-crown Submariner, produced in 1954–55. Its documented examples include a clean-dial series with pencil hands and a later series with “Submariner” text and Mercedes hands. Sources differ on whether the 6200, the 6205, or both should receive credit for introducing the Mercedes hand; this page records the disagreement rather than treating it as settled. | ||
== Core facts == | == Core facts == | ||
{| class="wikitable" | {| class="wikitable rp-facts" | ||
|- | |- | ||
! detail | ! detail | ||
| Line 34: | Line 35: | ||
|- | |- | ||
| production | | production | ||
| | | 1954–1955 in the auction and specialist sources; wider estimates extend to 1953–56 | ||
|- | |||
| total produced | |||
| approximately 810 in one specialist estimate; not independently confirmed | |||
|- | |- | ||
| case | | case | ||
| 37mm | | 37mm | ||
|- | |- | ||
| crown | | crown | ||
| 6mm ( | | 6mm (Mulraney/Monochrome late-series); 5.3mm; the 6mm and 5.3mm figures coexist in the literature | ||
|- | |||
| crown markings | |||
| Rolex coronet with the "+" Swiss-made sub-mark | |||
|- | |- | ||
| movement | | movement | ||
| caliber A260 ( | | caliber A260, 19 jewels (carried over from 6204) | ||
|- | |- | ||
| depth rating | | depth rating | ||
| 100m ( | | 100m; the original 6205 dials documented here do not show depth-rating text | ||
|- | |||
| hands | |||
| pencil with lollipop seconds (Series 1) → Mercedes with lollipop seconds (Series 2) | |||
|- | |- | ||
| crown guards | | crown guards | ||
| Line 53: | Line 63: | ||
| crystal | | crystal | ||
| acrylic | | acrylic | ||
| | |} | ||
<span id="where-it-sits-in-the-line"></span> | |||
== Where it sits in the line == | == Where it sits in the line == | ||
The 6205 | The 6205 follows the 6204 on the small-crown branch. Both use a no-crown-guard case and caliber A260. The 6205 adds a clean-dial series and a later Mercedes-hand series; the 5508, 5510, and 6538 followed as the range expanded into separate small- and big-crown forms. | ||
Published examples fall into an early 21,3xx–21,6xx band and a later 85,9xx–86,0xx band, with one pre-reset 988,xxx example also reported. The 1954 serial reset is one explanation for the gap, but these lots do not form a complete factory register. A specialist estimate of about 810 watches is not corroborated by the auction houses or by Foulkes’s separate 6204 figure, so it remains an estimate. | |||
<span id="production-outline"></span> | |||
== Production outline == | == Production outline == | ||
The 6205 ran for about a year. Auction and specialist sources place production in 1954–55. One specialist chronology extends the window to 1953–56, while broader reference pages give a wider range. Foulkes’s ''Oyster Perpetual Submariner'' places the 6204, 6200, and 6205 around the 1954 Basel launch, with the 6204 first. | |||
Published examples can be grouped into two series. Series 1 (early 1954) carries a clean dial without "Submariner" text, pencil hands, and a lollipop seconds hand inherited from the 6204. Series 2 (still 1954, into 1955) brings "Submariner" back to the dial and introduces Mercedes hands paired with the same lollipop seconds. Monochrome's 2020 Submariner history (referencing Eric Wind) makes the Series 1 / Series 2 framing explicit; Erik Gustafson's 2018 survey and Le Monde Edmond (2014) corroborate that pencil-hand examples exist; the cited sources do not establish a population count. Logan Baker's 2024 Phillips article complicates the Mercedes-hand claim by crediting both the 6200 and the 6205 with the introduction; the sources agree that 6200 and 6205 ran concurrently in 1954 and both adopted Mercedes hands, with the 6205 sometimes treated as first, sometimes joint-first. | |||
<span id="movement-notes"></span> | |||
== Movement notes == | == Movement notes == | ||
The 6205 | The documented 6205 movement is caliber A260, the 19-jewel automatic also used in the 6204. One auction catalogue lists a different caliber and jewel count, while other 6205 records, including the 2025 Geneva lot, identify A260. That outlier should be treated as a catalogue discrepancy or an individual service history, not as a standard 6205 variant. | ||
A260 belongs to the early automatic family shared by the 6204 and 6205. Later service work can introduce another caliber, so a movement number that does not match the case and period requires inspection rather than an automatic reference reassignment. | |||
<span id="dial-map"></span> | |||
== Dial map == | == Dial map == | ||
The documented 6205 dials in this research set are glossy black gilt, with gold-toned printing on a black lacquer ground. The original examples reviewed here do not show depth-rating text. Honeycomb texture is mentioned in general early-Submariner discussions, but no 6205 example in the source set establishes it as a standard variant. | |||
<gallery mode="packed" heights="180"> | |||
File:Ref 6205 gilt-dial-detail.webp|alt=Gilt dial with applied markers|Gilt dial with applied markers | |||
File:Ref 6205 dial-detail.webp|alt=6205 dial and bezel close-up|6205 dial and bezel close-up | |||
</gallery> | |||
<span id="clean-dial- | <span id="clean-no-submariner-dial-series-1"></span> | ||
=== Clean dial ( | === Clean dial (Series 1, no Submariner text) === | ||
The earliest 6205s carry a gilt dial without the "Submariner" wording. Antiquorum's Geneva 2025 lot 377-180 carries a no-Submariner-text reprinted dial in case 21,644 and sold for CHF 16,250. Phillips Game Changers 2019 lot 54 (case 21,354) is a documented original-condition Series 1 example: pencil hands paired with lollipop seconds, no "Submariner" text on the dial. Monochrome's 2020 Submariner history attributes the removal of the wording to "reasons unknown"; collector speculation has pointed at trademark timing, with no primary-source confirmation. | |||
<span id="signed-dial | <span id="signed-dial-mercedes-hands-series-2"></span> | ||
=== | === Submariner-signed dial with Mercedes hands (Series 2) === | ||
The | The Series 2 dial puts "Submariner" back above the centre post, in the same gilt construction over a glossy black lacquer ground. The Mercedes hour hand pairs with a baton minute hand and the same lollipop seconds carried over from Series 1. Logan Baker's 2024 Phillips article notes the early Mercedes hour hand reads markedly longer than later versions — a "first iteration" silhouette that distinguishes Series 2 6205s from later 5508 / 5512 / 5513 hand sets. Sotheby's 2022 lot 13 (case 21,442) documents Mercedes hands paired with a stretch riveted Oyster bracelet on a low-movement-number example; Sotheby's 2019 lot 178 (case 85,972) and Sotheby's 2025 lot 336 (case 86,033, restored by Rolex Atelier de Restauration in 2023) document later-numbered Series 2 examples. | ||
< | <gallery mode="packed" heights="180"> | ||
== | File:Ref 6205 caseback.webp|alt=6205 smooth screw-down caseback|6205 smooth screw-down caseback | ||
File:Ref 6205 no-depth-dial.webp|alt=6205 Submariner-signed dial without depth rating|6205 Submariner-signed dial without depth rating | |||
</gallery> | |||
<span id="signed-dial-with-chapter-ring"></span> | |||
=== Signed dial with chapter ring === | |||
A subset of Series 2 dials adds a chapter ring — the minute-track ring printed around the dial perimeter. Specialist documentation records a 1955 example with a gilt chapter-ring "Submariner" dial paired with the Mercedes hour hand and a 7206/80 bracelet (clasp 1 55). One specialist-documented 1954 example carries a chapter-ring "Submariner only" dial paired with a red-triangle bezel insert. Treat chapter-ring presence as variant-dependent within Series 2 rather than universal. | |||
<span id="tropical-and-restored-dials"></span> | |||
=== Tropical gilt and Atelier-restored === | |||
<span id="case-bezel-crystal-and-crown | Some 6205 gilt dials have shifted toward brown, a condition collectors call tropical. Sotheby’s 2025 lot 336 records a 2023 Atelier de Restauration service, while Antiquorum’s 2025 lot 377 records a re-lumed, reprinted dial. These are separate condition and service histories, not a ranking of every 6205. | ||
<span id="case-bezel-crystal-and-crown"></span> | |||
== Case, bezel, crystal, and crown == | == Case, bezel, crystal, and crown == | ||
The 6205 case measures about 37mm without the crown, with a reported 47mm lug-to-lug span. It retains the no-crown-guard architecture and acrylic crystal of the early Submariner family. Series 1 examples are documented with no-hash inserts; a specialist-documented 1954 example has a red-triangle insert with the 12 o’clock marker filled in red enamel. Insert fitment should be checked on the individual watch. | |||
Sources give the crown as about 6mm or 5.3mm, so the measurement should be treated as source-dependent. The crown carries the Rolex coronet with the "+" sub-mark in the documented examples. The caseback is smooth on the exterior, with the reference and case number inside; individual caseback markings still need inspection. | |||
A small | A small group of 6205 cases carry a "stainless steel" engraving between the lugs at the 12 o'clock position. A single catalogued example, inventory #5080, is the canonical published record. The engraving is uncommon and does not represent a standard 6205 feature. | ||
<gallery mode="packed" heights="180"> | |||
File:Ref 6205 case-bezel-profile.webp|alt=Small crown case profile, no crown guards|Small crown case profile, no crown guards | |||
File:Ref 6205 bezel-crystal-top.webp|alt=Domed crystal and bezel, top view|Domed crystal and bezel, top view | |||
</gallery> | |||
<span id="bracelets-end-links-clasps-and-packaging | |||
<span id="bracelets-end-links-clasps-and-packaging"></span> | |||
== Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes == | == Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes == | ||
Published examples show different period-correct bracelet combinations. An early 21,3xx–21,6xx example has a Gay Frères stretch-riveted Oyster with end links marked 64 or 65; later examples are recorded with 7206 riveted bracelets and 80 end pieces. These observations date the bracelet or clasp, not necessarily the original delivery. | |||
A specialist-documented 1954 example wears a USA C+I rivet bracelet with an 11/80 clasp and 1-61 date code. That later clasp is evidence of later fitment, not original delivery. A clasp code dates the clasp; it does not date the watch head. | |||
[[File:Ref 6205 bracelet-detail.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Rivet bracelet and case-flank detail|Rivet bracelet and case-flank detail]] | |||
<span id="historical-market-and-auction-record"></span> | |||
== Historical market and auction record == | == Historical market and auction record == | ||
{| class="wikitable sortable" | |||
|- | |||
! Sale !! Lot !! Year !! Serial !! Variant !! Hammer | |||
|- | |||
| Phillips Game Changers NY || 54 || 2019 || 21,354 || pencil hands, no-Submariner dial, riveted Oyster end-link 65 || USD 162,500 | |||
|- | |||
| Sotheby's Important Watches NY || 178 || 2019 || 85,972 || Mercedes, gilt no depth || est. USD 20,000–30,000 | |||
|- | |||
| Sotheby's Watches Online 3 || 45 || 2020 || 85,972 || Mercedes + large seconds, no Submariner text noted || est. USD 20,000–30,000 | |||
|- | |||
| Sotheby's Fine Watches || 13 || 2022 || 21,442 || Mercedes + lollipop, gilt gloss || est. GBP 10,000–20,000 | |||
|- | |||
| Sotheby's Important Watches Part II || 288 || 2024 || 21,465 || gilt black; movement catalogued cal. 765 (likely error) || est. CHF 10,000–30,000 | |||
|- | |||
| Sotheby's Important Watches II || 336 || 2025 || 86,033 || Atelier de Restauration 2023 restoration || est. CHF 40,000–80,000 | |||
|- | |||
| Antiquorum Geneva || 377 || 2025 || 21,644 || re-lumed reprinted dial, A260 19j || CHF 16,250 | |||
|} | |||
The sale records show a wide range of condition and service history. Phillips’s pencil-hand 21,354 example sold for USD 162,500. Antiquorum’s 2025 Geneva lot 377, described as re-lumed and reprinted, sold for CHF 16,250 against a CHF 5,000–10,000 estimate. These are individual results, not a price band for the reference. Mercedes hands continued on the 5508, 5512, and 5513. | |||
== Related references == | |||
* [[Reference:6200|Submariner 6200]]: "King Sub", big crown (1953–1956) | |||
* [[Reference:6204|Submariner 6204]]: 1953–1954 | |||
* [[Reference:6536|Submariner 6536]]: early gilt, no crown guards (1955–1958) | |||
* [[Reference:5510|Submariner 5510]]: big crown, caliber 1530 (1957–1958) | |||
* [[Reference:6538|Submariner 6538]]: big crown (1956–1959) | |||
* [[Reference:5508|Submariner 5508]]: 1957–1961 | |||
See also the [[Reference:submariner|Submariner family index]], [[Reference:Movements|movement reference]], [[Reference:Bracelets|bracelet & clasp guide]], and [[Reference:Serial-numbers|serial numbers by year]]. | |||
<gallery mode="packed" heights="180"> | |||
File:Ref 6205 hero.webp|alt=6205 small-crown Submariner|6205 small-crown Submariner | |||
File:Ref 6205 gilt-dial-detail.webp|alt=Gilt dial detail|Gilt dial detail | |||
File:Ref 6205 no-depth-dial.webp|alt=Submariner-signed dial without depth rating|Submariner-signed dial without depth rating | |||
File:Ref 6205 case-bezel-profile.webp|alt=Small-crown case and bezel profile|Small-crown case and bezel profile | |||
File:Ref 6205 bracelet-detail.webp|alt=Riveted bracelet and case flank|Riveted bracelet and case flank | |||
</gallery> | |||
== Sources == | == Sources == | ||
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2020/watches-online-3/rolex-reference-6205-small-crown-submariner-a Reference 6205 Small Crown Submariner, | |||
* [https:// | * [https://newsroom.rolex.com/watches/oyster-collection/submariner Rolex Submariner models] — official 1969 Submariner Date introduction and 200m/660ft chronology | ||
* [https://monochrome-watches.com/rolex-submariner-history-part-1-the-early-references/ History of the Rolex Submariner — Part 1, The Early References] — Tom Mulraney (Monochrome, 2020) | |||
* [https://le-monde-edmond.com/in-depth-review-6205-submariner-rolex/ In-Depth Review: 6205 Submariner Rolex] — Edmond Saran (Le Monde Edmond, 2014) | |||
* [https://hairspring.com/blogs/finds/a-very-early-diver-rolex-6205-submariner A Very-Early Diver: Rolex 6205 Submariner] — Erik Gustafson (Hairspring, 2018) | |||
* [https://www.windvintage.com/rolex-submariner-reference-6205 Rolex Submariner Reference 6205] — Eric Wind (Wind Vintage) | |||
* [https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/rolex-submariner-reference-points Reference Points: Understanding The Rolex Submariner] — Stephen Pulvirent (Hodinkee, 2019) | |||
* [https://www.phillips.com/detail/rolex/NY080119/54 Rolex Reference 6205 — Lot 54, Game Changers NY] (Phillips, 2019) | |||
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2020/watches-online-3/rolex-reference-6205-small-crown-submariner-a Reference 6205 Small Crown Submariner — Watches Online 3 lot 45] (Sotheby's, 2020) | |||
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2022/fine-watches/submariner-small-crown-ref-6205-a-stainless-steel Submariner Ref. 6205 — Fine Watches lot 13] (Sotheby's, 2022) | |||
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2025/importand-watches-ii-ge2511/submariner-reference-6205-a-stainless-steel Submariner Reference 6205 — Important Watches II lot 336] (Sotheby's, 2025) | |||
* [https://catalog.antiquorum.swiss/en/lots/rolex-ref-6205-submariner-lot-377-180 Rolex Ref. 6205 Submariner — Antiquorum Geneva lot 377] (Antiquorum, 2025) | |||
* [https://rolexpassionreport.com/23509/rolex-6205-submariner-with-patina-at-its-best/ Rolex 6205 Submariner with Patina at its Best] — Philipp Stahl (Rolex Passion Report, 2017) | |||
* [https://tropicalwatch.com/watches/1955-rolex-submariner-6205/5wiu 1955 Rolex Submariner 6205] (Tropical Watch) | |||
* [https://hqmilton.com/products/1954-rolex-submariner-6205-red-triangle 1954 Rolex Submariner 6205 Red Triangle] (HQ Milton) | |||
* [https://bulangandsons.com/products/rolex-submariner-6205-small-crown-first-submariner-w3332 Rolex Submariner 6205 Small Crown 'First Submariner'] | |||
* [https://obwcollection.com/products/rolex-6205-submariner Rolex 6205 Submariner — earliest configuration] (OBW Collection) | |||
* [https://rolexhaven.com/6205-submariner--54.html Submariner 6205 from 1954] (RolexHaven) | |||
* [https://www.phillips.com/article/144608770/rolex-submariner-explorer-dial-6200-big-crown-5512-vintage-auction In-Depth: A Review of Vintage Rolex Submariners with 'Explorer' Dials] — Logan Baker (Phillips, 2024) | |||
* [https://goldammer.me/blogs/articles/rolex-finally-releases-insights-quantifying-the-early-rolex-submariner Quantifying the Early Rolex Submariner] (Goldammer, 2024) | |||
* ''Oyster Perpetual Submariner: The Watch That Unlocked the Deep'' — Nicholas Foulkes (Wallpaper / ACC Art Books, 2024) | |||
* ''The Vintage Rolex Field Manual'' — Colin A. White, Morning Tundra | * ''The Vintage Rolex Field Manual'' — Colin A. White, Morning Tundra | ||
[[Category:Submariner]] | [[Category:Submariner]] | ||