Reference:2736: Difference between revisions

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Latest revision as of 20:40, 11 October 2026

Prince → 2736

Bonhams lists three Rolex watches as reference 2736: two in stainless steel and one in 9K gold. Its 2019 and 2024 catalogues identify the model as Prince. The steel cases have separate numbers, 025541 and 029568. The three lots give sample dates, not production boundaries or a complete variant list.

Core facts

detail	value
reference	2736
family	Prince (manual-wind, rectangular)
documented examples	three Bonhams lots: steel, circa 1930 and circa 1932; 9K gold with a Glasgow import mark for 1938
case shape	rectangular, stepped/faceted profile
case size	Bonhams lists 22mm x 31mm, 22mm x 30mm, and 22mm x 40mm; measurement points are not stated for the last figure
crown	plain pull-out
movement	15-jewel manual wind in all three catalogues; no caliber number given
case materials	stainless steel (cases 025541 and 029568); 9K gold (case 46251)
dial	three photographed treatments — see Dial map

Where it sits in the line

Bonhams identifies the 2019 and 2024 examples as Prince; its 2026 lot lists the Rolex reference without a model name. The Vintage Rolex Field Manual files reference 2736 under “Pre-Cellini,” with “Manual” in its caliber column and “Square” as the shape. These sources use different classifications, and the Field Manual’s table gives no further description.

Production outline

Bonhams dates the steel watches to circa 1930 and circa 1932. Its 2019 gold listing gives a Glasgow import mark for 1938; that mark dates the case’s assay, not necessarily the watch’s manufacture. These dates anchor three individual watches rather than a production chronology. Their case numbers are 025541 and 029568 (steel) and 46251 (gold).

Movement notes

All three Bonhams catalogues describe a 15-jewel manual-wind movement. None gives a caliber number. The listings and photographs show small seconds at 6; they do not identify a numbered movement family for this reference.

Dial map

The 2024 steel watch has a silvered dial with a plain “ROLEX” wordmark, baton and dagger markers, and small seconds at 6. The 2019 gold watch has a coronet above “ROLEX,” gilt Arabic numerals, a railroad-style track around the seconds register, and “SWISS MADE” at the foot. Bonhams describes the 2026 steel dial as silvered and signed; its photograph shows Arabic numerals and a coronet. Bonhams also notes that the 2026 watch’s hands were replaced. These three examples show different dial layouts; the factory’s full range remains undocumented.

2024 steel example: plain “ROLEX” wordmark, baton and dagger markers
2019 gold example: coronet and gilt Arabic numerals

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown

Both steel examples are described as polished rectangular cases; the 2024 case is described as stepped, while the 2026 case has a snap-on back. The gold case also has a snap-on back. Bonhams lists sizes of 22mm x 31mm for the 2024 steel watch, 22mm x 40mm for the 2026 steel watch, and 22mm x 30mm for the gold watch. Since the catalogue entries do not state how those measurements were taken, the figures should not be read as confirmed case-size variants. The catalogues do not identify the crystal material. The 2024 steel and 2019 gold casebacks carry personal inscriptions; Bonhams does not transcribe them.

The 2024 steel case has a stepped rectangular profile.

Bracelets, end links, and clasps

The 2019 gold watch and 2024 steel watch were catalogued on leather straps; Bonhams calls the 2024 strap and buckle “associated.” The 2026 steel watch was photographed on a folded-link steel bracelet with a signed GF clasp. Bonhams describes both as later and associated; original factory fitment and end-link details remain unknown.

Rolex Prince 2736 case 029568 on a folded-link steel bracelet, catalogued as later and associated — Case 029568 on the later associated bracelet shown in Bonhams’ 2026 catalogue.

Auction record

Venue	Date	Lot	Case no.	Material	Dial	Estimate	Result
Bonhams, "Watches and Wristwatches," London Knightsbridge	2019-05-21	67	46251	9K gold	Silvered, gilt Arabic numerals, coronet	GBP 700–900	GBP 892.50 inc. premium
Bonhams, "Weekly: Watches London" (online)	2024-05-08	107	025541	Steel	Silvered, baton/dagger markers, plain wordmark	GBP 800–1,200	GBP 1,088 inc. premium
Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, "Property of a Noble Collector Part 2"	2026-09-08	6	029568	Steel	Silvered; photograph shows Arabic numerals and coronet	EUR 1,500–2,500	EUR 4,864 inc. premium

The 2026 result was above estimate. Three sales across two case materials are too few to establish a price pattern.

Related references

Prince 1527 "Railway" — stepped bi-color Prince with a documented case-shape nickname
Prince 1490
Prince 1491 Jump Hour
Prince 1862
Prince 3361
Prince 3937

Steel case 025541, Bonhams 2024
Steel case 029568 on later associated bracelet, Bonhams 2026
Steel dial, case 025541
9K gold dial, case 46251
Stepped case profile, case 025541

Sources

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{DISPLAYTITLE:Rolex 2736 Prince}}
 {{#seo:
-|title=Rolex Prince 2736 — Steel and 9K Gold Auction Record &#124; Rolexopedia
+|title=Rolex Prince 2736 — Three Catalogued Examples &#124; Rolexopedia
-|description=Rolex reference 2736: a 1930s rectangular Prince documented in stainless steel and 9K gold across two Bonhams auction lots, with two distinct dial treatments.
+|description=Three Bonhams lots list Rolex reference 2736 in steel and 9K gold; two catalogue it as a Prince, with different dials and case numbers.
 |image=Ref 2736 hero.webp
 |type=article
@@ Line 13: / Line 13: @@
 </div>
-The 2736 is a rectangular Rolex Prince documented in two case materials: stainless steel and 9K gold. Two Bonhams lots, five years apart, catalogue it under Bonhams' own structured "Reference: 2736" field, distinct from either watch's case number. Neither lot carries a Railway, Dauphin, Brancard, or Imperial-style nickname — the reference reads as a plain Prince, without a distinguishing case-shape name attached to it in the auction record.
+Bonhams lists three Rolex watches as reference 2736: two in stainless steel and one in 9K gold. Its 2019 and 2024 catalogues identify the model as Prince. The steel cases have separate numbers, 025541 and 029568. The three lots give sample dates, not production boundaries or a complete variant list.
 ==Core facts==
@@ Line 29: / Line 29: @@
 |-
 | documented examples
-| circa 1930 (steel); Glasgow import mark for 1938 (9K gold)
+| three Bonhams lots: steel, circa 1930 and circa 1932; 9K gold with a Glasgow import mark for 1938
 |-
 | case shape
@@ Line 35: / Line 35: @@
 |-
 | case size
-| 22mm x 31mm (steel); 22mm x 30mm (gold)
+| Bonhams lists 22mm x 31mm, 22mm x 30mm, and 22mm x 40mm; measurement points are not stated for the last figure
 |-
 | crown
-| plain pull-out, not screw-down
+| plain pull-out
 |-
 | movement
-| 15-jewel manual wind; caliber not published in either catalogue
+| 15-jewel manual wind in all three catalogues; no caliber number given
 |-
 | case materials
-| stainless steel (case 025541); 9K gold (case 46251)
+| stainless steel (cases 025541 and 029568); 9K gold (case 46251)
 |-
 | dial
-| two treatments documented — see Dial map
+| three photographed treatments — see Dial map
 |}
 ==Where it sits in the line==
-Rolex's Prince line ran through the 1920s and 1930s as the company's rectangular Art Deco dress watch, built around the Aegler 10½-ligne movement family and sold under a scatter of case-shape names — Railway, Dauphin, Brancard, Imperial, and others — each tied to a specific stepped or faceted case profile. The 2736 does not carry one of those names in either documented sale. Both Bonhams catalogues describe it simply as "Prince," which places it among the reference's plainer, unnamed rectangular case variants rather than one of the line's celebrated Art Deco shapes.
+Bonhams identifies the 2019 and 2024 examples as Prince; its 2026 lot lists the Rolex reference without a model name. The Vintage Rolex Field Manual files reference 2736 under “Pre-Cellini,” with “Manual” in its caliber column and “Square” as the shape. These sources use different classifications, and the Field Manual’s table gives no further description.
-The two documented 2736 examples share a case size close enough (22mm x 31mm and 22mm x 30mm) to read as the same case design in two metals, not two different models sharing a reference number by coincidence.
 ==Production outline==
-Bonhams dates the steel example "circa 1930" by catalogue estimate. The gold example carries a Glasgow import hallmark for 1938 — an assay-office mark that dates when the watch entered the UK market, not necessarily when Rolex made it, so 1938 is a floor for that specific watch rather than a fixed manufacture year. Two data points eight years apart do not establish a production window; both are documented examples, not boundaries on a range.
+Bonhams dates the steel watches to circa 1930 and circa 1932. Its 2019 gold listing gives a Glasgow import mark for 1938; that mark dates the case’s assay, not necessarily the watch’s manufacture. These dates anchor three individual watches rather than a production chronology. Their case numbers are 025541 and 029568 (steel) and 46251 (gold).
-Case numbers are known for both: 025541 (steel) and 46251 (gold). Two numbers do not support any reading of serial sequence for the reference.
 ==Movement notes==
-Both documented examples carry a 15-jewel manual-wind movement. Neither Bonhams catalogue names a caliber number, and no other source consulted supplies one. On the wrist, both watches wind through a plain pull-out crown — the Prince line never adopted the Oyster's screw-down waterproofing system — and run a small seconds register at 6, standard for the Prince duo-dial architecture even where, as here, the register sits alone rather than beside a matching hours-and-minutes sub-dial.
+All three Bonhams catalogues describe a 15-jewel manual-wind movement. None gives a caliber number. The listings and photographs show small seconds at 6; they do not identify a numbered movement family for this reference.
 ==Dial map==
+The 2024 steel watch has a silvered dial with a plain “ROLEX” wordmark, baton and dagger markers, and small seconds at 6. The 2019 gold watch has a coronet above “ROLEX,” gilt Arabic numerals, a railroad-style track around the seconds register, and “SWISS MADE” at the foot. Bonhams describes the 2026 steel dial as silvered and signed; its photograph shows Arabic numerals and a coronet. Bonhams also notes that the 2026 watch’s hands were replaced. These three examples show different dial layouts; the factory’s full range remains undocumented.
 <gallery mode="packed" heights="180">
-File:Ref 2736 dial-steel.webp|alt=Rolex 2736 steel dial with baton markers|Steel example: plain "ROLEX" wordmark, no coronet, applied baton and dagger hour markers
+File:Ref 2736 dial-steel.webp|alt=Rolex 2736 steel dial with baton markers|2024 steel example: plain “ROLEX” wordmark, baton and dagger markers
-File:Ref 2736 dial-gold.webp|alt=Rolex 2736 gold dial with Arabic numerals and coronet|Gold example: "ROLEX" below a coronet, applied gilt Arabic numerals, "SWISS MADE" at the dial foot
+File:Ref 2736 dial-gold.webp|alt=Rolex 2736 gold dial with Arabic numerals and coronet|2019 gold example: coronet and gilt Arabic numerals
 </gallery>
-The two documented examples show two distinct dial treatments. The steel watch carries a silvered dial with a plain "ROLEX" wordmark and no coronet, applied baton and dagger hour markers, and a plain subsidiary-seconds register at 6. The gold watch carries a silvered dial with "ROLEX" printed below a coronet, applied gilt Arabic numerals at every hour, a railroad-style track ringing the subsidiary-seconds register, and "SWISS MADE" printed at the foot of the dial.
-With only two documented examples, whether this split tracks case material, sale era, retailer preference, or simple watch-to-watch variation within one reference is not established. Both are recorded here as the reference's full known dial range.
 ==Case, bezel, crystal, and crown==
-[[File:Ref 2736 case-profile.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Rolex 2736 case profile showing the stepped rectangular form and plain crown|Case profile: stepped rectangular form and a plain, non-screw-down winding crown]]
+Both steel examples are described as polished rectangular cases; the 2024 case is described as stepped, while the 2026 case has a snap-on back. The gold case also has a snap-on back. Bonhams lists sizes of 22mm x 31mm for the 2024 steel watch, 22mm x 40mm for the 2026 steel watch, and 22mm x 30mm for the gold watch. Since the catalogue entries do not state how those measurements were taken, the figures should not be read as confirmed case-size variants. The catalogues do not identify the crystal material. The 2024 steel and 2019 gold casebacks carry personal inscriptions; Bonhams does not transcribe them.
-Both documented cases are rectangular with a stepped, faceted profile characteristic of 1930s Prince construction. The steel example measures 22mm x 31mm; the gold example 22mm x 30mm — a 1mm difference in line with normal case-to-case tolerance rather than a documented size variant. Neither catalogue records crystal material. The crown on both is a plain pull-out type, not the screw-down Oyster system Rolex reserved for its waterproof sports and tool watches.
+[[File:Ref 2736 case-profile.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Side view of Rolex Prince 2736 case 025541, showing its stepped rectangular profile|The 2024 steel case has a stepped rectangular profile.]]
-The steel case shows a snap or press-fit back carrying case number 025541 and a personal inscription; the gold case has a snap-on back carrying case number 46251 and a separate personal engraving. Neither engraving is transcribed here — both are private individual markings with no independent documentation tying them to a named collector or original owner.
+==Bracelets, end links, and clasps==
-==Bracelets, end links, and clasps==
+The 2019 gold watch and 2024 steel watch were catalogued on leather straps; Bonhams calls the 2024 strap and buckle “associated.” The 2026 steel watch was photographed on a folded-link steel bracelet with a signed GF clasp. Bonhams describes both as later and associated; original factory fitment and end-link details remain unknown.
-Neither documented example is on a period-original strap. The steel watch carries an "associated" black leather strap with a steel buckle; the gold watch carries a brown leather strap with a gold-plated buckle. Bonhams does not claim either as original to the watch.
+[[File:Ref 2736 bracelet.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Rolex Prince 2736 case 029568 on a folded-link steel bracelet, catalogued as later and associated|Case 029568 on the later associated bracelet shown in Bonhams’ 2026 catalogue.]]
 ==Auction record==
@@ Line 119: / Line 113: @@
 | GBP 800–1,200
 | GBP 1,088 inc. premium
+|-
+| Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, "Property of a Noble Collector Part 2"
+| 2026-09-08
+| 6
+| 029568
+| Steel
+| Silvered; photograph shows Arabic numerals and coronet
+| EUR 1,500–2,500
+| EUR 4,864 inc. premium
 |}
-Two results, five years apart and in different case materials, are on record. Both sold within or close to estimate. Two results are not enough to establish a price pattern for the reference by material or dial variant.
+The 2026 result was above estimate. Three sales across two case materials are too few to establish a price pattern.
 == Related references ==
@@ Line 133: / Line 136: @@
 See also the [[Reference:prince|Prince family index]], [[Reference:Movements|movement reference]], and [[Reference:Serial-numbers|serial numbers by year]].
+<gallery mode="packed" heights="180">
+File:Ref 2736 hero.webp|alt=Rolex Prince 2736, steel case 025541, Bonhams 2024|Steel case 025541, Bonhams 2024
+File:Ref 2736 bracelet.webp|alt=Rolex Prince 2736, steel case 029568, on later associated folded-link bracelet, Bonhams 2026|Steel case 029568 on later associated bracelet, Bonhams 2026
+File:Ref 2736 dial-steel.webp|alt=Rolex Prince 2736 steel dial, case 025541|Steel dial, case 025541
+File:Ref 2736 dial-gold.webp|alt=Rolex Prince 2736 9K gold dial, case 46251|9K gold dial, case 46251
+File:Ref 2736 case-profile.webp|alt=Rolex Prince 2736 case 025541, stepped profile|Stepped case profile, case 025541
+</gallery>
 == Sources ==
+* [https://www.bonhams.com/auction/31790/lot/6/rolex-a-stainless-steel-manual-wind-rectangular-bracelet-watch-rolex-montre-bracelet-en-acier-de-forme-rectangulaire-mouvement-mecanique-ref-2736-circa-1932/ "Rolex. A stainless steel manual wind rectangular bracelet watch, ref. 2736, circa 1932", Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, lot 6, 2026-09-08]
 * [https://www.bonhams.com/auction/29888/lot/107/rolex-a-stainless-steel-manual-wind-wristwatch-prince-ref-2736-circa-1930/ "Rolex. A stainless steel manual wind wristwatch, Prince, Ref: 2736, Circa 1930", Bonhams, 2024-05-08]
 * [https://www.bonhams.com/auction/25395/lot/67/rolex-a-9k-gold-manual-wind-rectangular-wristwatch-prince-ref-2736-glasgow-import-mark-for-1938/ "Rolex. A 9K gold manual wind rectangular wristwatch, Prince, Ref: 2736, Glasgow Import mark for 1938", Bonhams, 2019-05-21]
+* [https://irp-cdn.multiscreensite.com/0b5fdf83/files/uploaded/1.0%20RolexBook-23Mar.pdf The Vintage Rolex Field Manual, Colin A. White, “Dress Watch References,” Pre-Cellini table, ref. 2736]
 [[Category:Prince]]