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Reference:16613: Difference between revisions

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Place the Tiffany-signed dial photo (matching the already-cited Sotheby's lot) and an LN full-body shot, both previously uploaded but unused
Deep correctness, grounding, image and anti-slop audit: qualify 16613 production, dial, Serti, fitment, market and auction claims; fix galleries.
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The 16613 is the two-tone Submariner Date of the caliber 3135 era, in production from 1989 to 2009 under a single reference number across two suffix configurations: the 16613LN with black bezel insert and black dial, and the 16613LB with blue bezel insert and blue sunburst dial, known to collectors as the Bluesy. Over that span the 16613 received several Submariner detail updates, from the tritium-to-Luminova-to-Super-Luminova lume sequence through hollow-to-solid end links to the engraved ROLEX ROLEX rehaut, before the Cerachrom 116613LN and 116613LB replaced it.
The 16613 is the two-tone Submariner Date of the caliber 3135 era, generally dated from 1989 to 2009. It was sold as the 16613LN with a black bezel and dial or the 16613LB with a blue bezel and blue sunburst dial, commonly called the Bluesy. During the run, Rolex changed lume materials, bracelet construction, and the inner rehaut before the Cerachrom 116613 generation replaced it.


LN denotes ''lunette noire'' (black bezel) and LB denotes ''lunette bleue'' (blue bezel) in Rolex's standard suffix system. The Bluesy nickname applies to every blue-on-blue two-tone Submariner Rolex has produced from the 16803 through to the current 126613LB.
LN and LB are Rolex suffixes for black and blue bezel configurations. Bluesy is collector shorthand for the blue-on-blue two-tone configuration.


== Core facts ==
== Core facts ==
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The 16613 is the Rolesor member of the 3135-era Submariner Date trio. Rolesor is Rolex's term for steel-and-gold construction, with gold in every visible wear surface. The steel 16610 carried the widest market and ran 23 years; the 16613 carried the two-tone configuration with an 18k yellow-gold bezel, gold center links, and a gold crown and crown tube on a steel case; the full-gold 16618 was the maximum-material version of the same architecture. All three share the 40mm case and the caliber 3135 movement.
The 16613 is the Rolesor member of the 3135-era Submariner Date trio. Rolesor is Rolex's term for steel-and-gold construction, with gold in every visible wear surface. The steel 16610 carried the widest market and ran 23 years; the 16613 carried the two-tone configuration with an 18k yellow-gold bezel, gold center links, and a gold crown and crown tube on a steel case; the full-gold 16618 was the maximum-material version of the same architecture. All three share the 40mm case and the caliber 3135 movement.


The blue dial and bezel make the LB more conspicuous than the black 16613LN. The LB has generally commanded a premium on the secondary market. That premium has held steady across the production run and into the post-discontinuation aftermarket, on roughly the same logic that has separated the blue and black two-tone Subs through every generation since the 16803. The LN is the quieter half, with gold in every visible position, a black gloss dial, a black aluminum insert, and the Rolesor architecture buyers have known since the 1980s.  
The blue dial and bezel make the LB more conspicuous than the black 16613LN. Blue and black examples can trade differently, but any price gap depends on condition, completeness, venue, and date. No fixed premium is asserted here. The LN is the quieter half, with gold in every visible position, a black gloss dial, a black aluminum insert, and the Rolesor architecture buyers have known since the 1980s.  


The 116619LB Smurf is a 2008-onward blue-on-blue Submariner cased entirely in solid 18k white gold, with a blue Cerachrom insert; the 16613LB is steel and yellow gold with an aluminum insert. The similar blue colour scheme can obscure that difference in construction.
The 116619LB Smurf is a 2008-onward blue-on-blue Submariner cased entirely in solid 18k white gold, with a blue Cerachrom insert; the 16613LB is steel and yellow gold with an aluminum insert. The similar blue colour scheme can obscure that difference in construction.


The 16613 replaced the shorter-lived 16803, which had run from roughly 1984 to 1988 on the earlier caliber 3035. The movement was the substantive change at that boundary: the 3135 brought Microstella regulation and the higher frequency Rolex would carry forward for the next three decades. The Cerachrom 116613LN and 116613LB succeeded it in 2009, bringing the ceramic bezel insert, Maxi case, and Glidelock-equipped 97203 bracelet that defined the next chapter of the line.
The 16613 replaced the shorter-lived 16803, which had run from roughly 1984 to 1988 on the earlier caliber 3035. The movement changed to caliber 3135, with its own regulation and technical specification; individual performance depends on condition and service history. The Cerachrom 116613LN and 116613LB succeeded it in 2009, bringing the ceramic bezel insert, Maxi case, and Glidelock-equipped 97203 bracelet that defined the next chapter of the line.


== Twenty years in one reference ==
== Twenty years in one reference ==


Specifications changed over the long production run. Early production, 1989 to roughly 1998, carries tritium lume, the 93153 bracelet with hollow end links, a plain rehaut, and matte-finish components. Late production, roughly 2005 to 2009, carries Super-Luminova, the 93253 bracelet with solid end links, the engraved rehaut, and a finish much closer in character to the Cerachrom 116613 generation that followed.
Specifications changed during the run. Early examples are commonly found with tritium lume, a 93153 bracelet with hollow end links, and a plain rehaut; later examples commonly have non-tritium lume, solid-end-link 93253 bracelets, and an engraved rehaut. The exact changeovers are not established by a complete Rolex serial chart. The reference number alone does not identify the parts fitted to an individual watch.
 
A tritium 16613 on a hollow-link 93153 reads as a transitional late-vintage piece; a late Super-Luminova example with engraved rehaut reads as a modern pre-ceramic Submariner. The reference number alone does not distinguish those specifications.


== Production outline ==
== Production outline ==
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=== Mid production (~1998–2005) ===
=== Mid production (~1998–2005) ===


The dial lume moved from tritium to Luminova around 1998 and on to Super-Luminova within a year or two. The bracelet moved from 93153 to 93253 with solid end links around 2000. No source pins either changeover to a specific serial band.
The dial lume moved from tritium to Luminova around 1998 and on to Super-Luminova within a year or two. The bracelet moved from 93153 to 93253 with solid end links around 2000. Published sources do not pin either changeover to a single serial band.


=== Late production (~2005–2009) ===
=== Late production (~2005–2009) ===


Late watches gained an engraved inner rehaut, with repeating ROLEX ROLEX text and the serial number at the 6 o'clock position. The feature appeared somewhere between 2005 and 2008 depending on source. Late 16613 examples sit closer in finish and detail to the 116613 than to the early tritium watches that opened the run.
Late watches gained an engraved inner rehaut, with repeating ROLEX ROLEX text and the serial number at the 6 o'clock position. The feature appeared somewhere between 2005 and 2008 depending on source. Late examples share some visible features with the following 116613, but parts and service history still need individual inspection.


== Movement notes ==
== Movement notes ==
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== Dial map ==
== Dial map ==


Two core dial configurations run across the production span: the blue-bezel LB with a blue sunburst dial, and the black-bezel LN with a black gloss dial, both with applied gold hour markers and gold Mercedes hands. Within each suffix the same set of factory variants appears — standard production, the gem-set Serti family, and the early nipple-dial executions carried over from the 16803/16808.
Two core dial configurations run across the production span: the blue-bezel LB with a blue sunburst dial, and the black-bezel LN with a black gloss dial, both with applied gold hour markers and gold Mercedes hands. Within each suffix, auction and collector sources document standard dials, gem-set Serti configurations, and early dial forms associated with the preceding generation. The fitment and originality of any variant must be checked on the individual watch.


The lume-text branches mirror the wider Submariner family, and dial text is the fastest way to date a 16613. Early dials read T SWISS T or T<25 (tritium), which places the watch pre-1998. A brief transitional window carries SWISS only (Luminova), roughly 1998 to 2000. Late dials read SWISS MADE (Luminova then Super-Luminova), 2000 onwards.
The lume-text branches mirror the wider Submariner family, and dial text is the fastest way to date a 16613. Early dials read T SWISS T or T<25 (tritium), which places the watch pre-1998. A brief transitional window carries SWISS only (Luminova), roughly 1998 to 2000. Late dials read SWISS MADE (Luminova then Super-Luminova), 2000 onwards.
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=== 16613LB blue dial ===
=== 16613LB blue dial ===


<gallery mode="packed" heights="180">
The 16613LB dial is blue with a radial sunburst finish, applied gold hour markers, and gold Mercedes hands. The blue changes from dark navy in low light to brighter blue in direct light. Collector and auction descriptions report differences in sunburst finish between earlier and later examples, but no complete production cutoff is published.
File:Ref 16613LB serti-silvered.webp|alt=Factory Serti dial 16613LB with diamonds and sapphire baguettes|Factory Serti dial: silvered sunburst with eight diamond hour markers and sapphire baguettes at 6 and 9 o'clock — the Sultan-style configuration. Source and provenance for this specific example are unconfirmed; no matching Sotheby's lot has been found.
File:Ref 16613LB serti-detail.webp|alt=Silvered Serti dial close-up|Serti dial detail: the diamond/sapphire pattern reads as a quieter Sultan than the gold-cased 16808 variant.
File:Ref 16613 serti-dial.webp|alt=Factory Serti dial — diamond hour markers and sapphire indices|Factory Serti dial in the silver-base configuration; the LB Serti is the more commonly seen gem-set 16613
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The 16613LB dial is blue with a radial sunburst finish, applied gold hour markers, and gold Mercedes hands. The blue reads across a wider range than the LN's black — deep navy in low light, bright cornflower in direct sun, and a paler mid-tone that photographs rarely capture. Later-production dials show a more pronounced sunburst with sharper radial brushing than the flatter blue of early examples.


[[File:Ref 16613LB dial-standard.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Standard sunburst blue dial of the 16613LB|The standard 16613LB sunburst blue dial and blue aluminum bezel insert — the canonical Bluesy configuration, without the factory gem-setting shown in the gallery above.]]
[[File:Ref 16613LB dial-standard.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Standard sunburst blue dial of the 16613LB|The standard 16613LB sunburst blue dial and blue aluminum bezel insert — the canonical Bluesy configuration, without the factory gem-setting shown in the gallery above.]]
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[[File:Ref 16613LN dial-detail.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Black gloss dial of the 16613LN|The 16613LN gloss black dial, applied gilt-tone indices, gold-painted Submariner Superlative Chronometer text.]]
[[File:Ref 16613LN dial-detail.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Black gloss dial of the 16613LN|The 16613LN gloss black dial, applied gilt-tone indices, gold-painted Submariner Superlative Chronometer text.]]


The 16613LN dial is black gloss with gold-applied hour markers and gold Mercedes hands. The LN runs as a single core dial configuration through the production span, with three documented sub-variants:
The LN dial is black gloss with gold-applied hour markers and gold Mercedes hands. Auction and collector sources document standard, early raised-marker, and gem-set configurations:


* Standard gloss — black lacquer base, applied gold hour markers, gold Mercedes hands. Tritium lume on early watches, Luminova then Super-Luminova on later examples.
* Standard gloss — black lacquer base, applied gold hour markers, gold Mercedes hands. Tritium lume on early watches, Luminova then Super-Luminova on later examples.
* Nipple dial (early) — earliest 16613LN examples carry nipple-style applied markers with a raised central boss, a detail carried over from the preceding 16803 and 16808 generation. Found on the first years of production, and a collector identification point for pre-1990s watches.
* Early raised-marker dial — some early examples carry raised markers associated with the preceding 16803/16808 generation; exact fitment should be checked against the case and movement.
* Serti dial — factory gem-set dial in the 16613LN line. Diamond hour markers in place of the standard luminous plots. On the LN the diamond markers typically pair with ruby accents at the cardinal positions, with diamond-only configurations also documented. Factory Serti examples carry a substantial premium over aftermarket gem-set conversions, and that gap has made gem-set 16613s a long-running fraud target. Any Serti warrants extra scrutiny.
* Serti dial — gem-set examples with diamond and, in some configurations, colored-stone accents. Factory origin and later alterations are difficult to separate from photographs alone, so provenance and movement/case consistency matter.


=== Mother-of-pearl dial ===
=== Mother-of-pearl dial ===
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=== Service-replacement dial caution ===
=== Service-replacement dial caution ===


Rolex servicing routinely fitted Luminova dials to tritium-era watches once tritium dials were no longer manufactured. A pre-A-serial (pre-~1999) 16613 with a SWISS MADE dial has almost certainly had a service replacement. Rolex fitted the dial, so it is period-legitimate, but it is not the original configuration and collectors treat the swap as a meaningful deduction. The same caveat applies to both LN and LB examples.
Rolex servicing routinely fitted Luminova dials to tritium-era watches once tritium dials were no longer manufactured. A pre-transition 16613 with a later SWISS MADE dial may have received a service replacement. Rolex service parts can be period-legitimate while no longer matching original delivery. Confirm the change from the dial, hands, movement, service records, and serial context.


== Case, bezel, crystal, and crown ==
== Case, bezel, crystal, and crown ==
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The case is 40mm 904L stainless steel with 18k yellow gold crown guards and a gold Triplock screw-down crown, rated to 300m. The crystal is sapphire with a Cyclops magnifier over the date window at three o'clock. The bezel is 18k yellow gold carrying a unidirectional 60-click graduated aluminum insert with a luminous pearl at twelve, black on the LN and blue on the LB. The 16613 generation is firmly aluminum-insert; Cerachrom ceramic only arrived with the successor 116613.
The case is 40mm 904L stainless steel with 18k yellow gold crown guards and a gold Triplock screw-down crown, rated to 300m. The crystal is sapphire with a Cyclops magnifier over the date window at three o'clock. The bezel is 18k yellow gold carrying a unidirectional 60-click graduated aluminum insert with a luminous pearl at twelve, black on the LN and blue on the LB. The 16613 uses an aluminum insert; Cerachrom arrived with the successor 116613.


Aluminum scratches and fades with use, and the two suffixes age along different paths. Heavy-wear LN inserts lose colour to a graphite-grey or charcoal tone, with the fading concentrated at the high points where polishing and incidental contact are heaviest. Heavy-wear LB inserts go paler and slightly grey-green at those same high points while the deeper navy holds on in the recessed numerals, a form of fading some collectors value.
Aluminum inserts can scratch, fade, or be replaced. The exact appearance depends on exposure, wear, cleaning, and the insert itself; color change does not by itself prove originality.


Crisp original-finish inserts in either colour are increasingly hard to source, and replacements are easy to buy. Bezel originality is therefore part of any thorough authentication pass on this reference.
Because replacement inserts exist, bezel originality belongs in an authentication review.


The inner rehaut is plain on early and mid-production watches. Late examples, from around 2005, carry the engraved ROLEX ROLEX band that became the signature of the late aluminum-bezel and Cerachrom Submariner.
The inner rehaut is plain on early and mid-production watches. Late examples, from around 2005, carry the engraved ROLEX ROLEX band that became the signature of the late aluminum-bezel and Cerachrom Submariner.
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== Market position ==
== Market position ==


The 16613 is a regular fixture at auction. The blue LB is the more popular and higher-priced variant; the black LN trades at a steady discount that has held across the production run and into the secondary market.
Auction catalogues document both suffixes. Blue and black examples can differ in price, but the relationship changes with condition, dial, bracelet, completeness, venue, and date.


Inside each suffix the market sorts the run by era first. Early tritium watches on hollow-link 93153 bracelets sit at one end, mid-run Luminova examples in the middle, and late Super-Luminova examples with engraved rehaut and solid-link 93253 bracelets at the other. Above that baseline sit the factory gem-set dials, with the silver Serti at the top tier and the rarer Sultan as its own premium category. Tropical purple LB dials and first-year nipple dials trade as separate specialist segments that follow neither the era ladder nor the gem-set ladder.
Collectors often compare examples by lume era, bracelet construction, rehaut, dial configuration, and originality. These are observations about collecting and auction presentation, not a fixed pricing ladder.


The successor 116613LN and 116613LB brought the Cerachrom ceramic bezel and the Maxi case at retail, and current Rolex pricing on the modern two-tone Sub has pulled the late aluminum-insert 16613 up with it. Early tritium watches and the special-dial variants follow their own premium logic and do not track the retail reference at all. Standard sunburst-blue LB examples cluster in the USD 8,000–16,000 estimate band at Sotheby's New York and London Fine Watches sales; the factory gem-set tier lifts the reference into the USD 10,000–20,000+ band where provenance is clean. Phillips and Christie's catalogue the LB more frequently than the LN, and both less often than the steel 16610.
The 116613 successors added Cerachrom and the Maxi Case. The auction table below gives dated estimates and results; those lots should be compared individually rather than converted into current price bands. Gem-set and signed examples require separate provenance and condition analysis.


== Auction record ==
== Auction record ==
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| 2020-02-18 || Bonhams Watches and Wristwatches (Knightsbridge, London) || 227 || LB || 16613T, circa 2007, movement no. 3198****, sunburst blue dial with gilt Mercedes hands || sold GBP 8,812.50 inc. premium (est. GBP 4,000–6,000)
| 2020-02-18 || Bonhams Watches and Wristwatches (Knightsbridge, London) || 227 || LB || 16613T, circa 2007, movement no. 3198****, sunburst blue dial with gilt Mercedes hands || sold GBP 8,812.50 inc. premium (est. GBP 4,000–6,000)
|}
|}
<gallery mode="packed" heights="180">
Ref 16613LB serti-silvered.webp|Serti dial example
Ref 16613LB serti-detail.webp|Serti detail
Ref 16613 serti-dial.webp|Serti dial
Ref 16613LB dial-standard.webp|Standard LB dial
Ref 16613LN hero.webp|LN example
Ref 16613LN dial-detail.webp|LN dial detail
Ref 16613_detail_3.webp|Case and bracelet
Ref 16613LN caseback.webp|Caseback and bracelet
Ref 16613 serti-dial.webp|Serti dial close view
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== Related references ==
== Related references ==


* [[Reference:16610|Submariner 16610]] — Date, Cal 3135 (1988–2010)
* [[Reference:16610|Submariner 16610]]: date, caliber 3135 (1988–2010)
* [[Reference:16613LB|Submariner 16613LB]] — 1989–2009
* [[Reference:16613LB|Submariner 16613LB]]: 1989–2009
* [[Reference:16613LN|Submariner 16613LN]] — 1989–2009
* [[Reference:16613LN|Submariner 16613LN]]: 1989–2009
* [[Reference:16618|Submariner 16618]] — 1988–2009
* [[Reference:16618|Submariner 16618]]: 1988–2009
* [[Reference:14060|Submariner 14060]] — Non-Date, Cal 3000 (1990–2000)
* [[Reference:14060|Submariner 14060]]: non-date, caliber 3000 (1990–2000)
* [[Reference:14060M|Submariner 14060M]] — 2000–2012
* [[Reference:14060M|Submariner 14060M]]: 2000–2012


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]].
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]].


== Sources ==
== Sources ==
* [https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/rolex-submariner-reference-points Hodinkee: Reference Points — Understanding the Rolex Submariner] — 16613 and successor context
* [https://www.rolexforums.com/archive/index.php/t-120033.html Rolex Baselworld 2010 Submariner technical material] — contemporaneous comparison for the following ceramic generation
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolex_Submariner Wikipedia: Rolex Submariner] — family chronology


* [https://monochrome-watches.com/rolex-submariner-history-part-2-the-55xx-1680references/ Tom Mulraney, "History of the Rolex Submariner - Part 2, The 55XX References and 1680 Date", Monochrome, 2020-08-19]
* [https://monochrome-watches.com/rolex-submariner-history-part-2-the-55xx-1680references/ Tom Mulraney, "History of the Rolex Submariner - Part 2, The 55XX References and 1680 Date", Monochrome, 2020-08-19]
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