Rolex 3353 Oyster Perpetual

A checked version of this page, approved on 25 September 2026, was based on this revision.

The 3353 is a small tonneau-shaped Oyster Perpetual with hooded lugs. Auction catalogues document steel, steel with pink gold, steel with yellow gold, and solid yellow-gold cases. They also show both subsidiary and centre seconds. The available catalogue record leaves the production span and any standard movement configuration unresolved.

Core facts

detail	value
reference	3353
family	Oyster Perpetual; grouped with Bubblebacks by collectors
documented case materials	Stainless steel; steel and pink gold; steel and yellow gold; yellow gold
documented case shape	Tonneau-shaped, with hooded lugs
documented diameter	28 mm in Sotheby's 2013 listing; 29 mm in Christie's 2015 and Antiquorum listings
movement reports	Cal. 520, 19 jewels in two steel examples; other catalogues give 18-jewel, 8¾-ligne movements without a caliber number; Sotheby's assigned Cal. 8970 to a yellow-gold example
documented seconds layouts	Subsidiary seconds and centre seconds
production dates	Auction catalogues date individual watches from circa 1935 to 1942; these dates do not define the reference's production span

Where it sits in the line

The 3353 belongs to the early Oyster Perpetual group collectors call Bubblebacks. Auction houses use several names for the hooded-lug shape, including “Scalloped” and “Rigid Hooded”; the terms describe the case form in those listings.

Production outline

Auction catalogues date individual 3353s from circa 1935 to 1942. Those dates belong to the listed watches and do not set the reference’s production boundaries. Case 146'243 is the clearest warning: Antiquorum dated it to 1940, while Christie's later catalogue called it circa 1935 and identified the 2006 Antiquorum appearance. These are competing catalogue dates for the same watch.

The case-numbered examples also show that 3353 was not limited to the steel “Scalloped” configuration. Antiquorum records case 44'249 as steel and pink gold, made in 1939, and case 201'920 as steel and yellow gold, made in 1942. Sotheby's records a solid yellow-gold example circa 1940. These auction descriptions establish individual examples; they do not show how common each material was.

Movement notes

Antiquorum and Christie's both describe steel case 146'243 with Cal. 520 and 19 jewels. Sotheby's gives the same caliber and jewel count for steel case 146'235. For the two-tone examples, Antiquorum reports an 18-jewel 8¾-ligne movement but does not name a caliber. Sotheby's calls the movement in its yellow-gold 3353 Cal. 8970; no separate source or movement photograph in the catalogue confirms that number. Keep that label attached to Sotheby's listing.

The catalogue descriptions also differ in seconds layout. Case 146'243 has subsidiary seconds, while Antiquorum describes centre seconds on the steel-and-yellow-gold case 201'920. The movement number for the latter is not stated.

Dial map

The catalogued dials vary in color and layout:

Case 146'243 appears with a pink dial and printed Arabic numerals, minute divisions, and subsidiary seconds. Antiquorum called the same watch beige in 2006; Christie's called it pink in 2015.
Sotheby's case 146'235 has a salmon dial with silvered Roman numerals at 12, 3, 6, and 9.
Antiquorum case 44'249 has an off-white dial with applied pink-gold Arabic 12 and dart indexes, luminous dots, and subsidiary seconds.
Antiquorum case 201'920 has a silver dial with luminous baton and Roman indexes, outer minute divisions, and centre seconds.
Sotheby's yellow-gold example has a silver dial with Arabic and baton indexes and subsidiary seconds.

These catalogue entries show several dial layouts, though they do not make a complete dial catalogue. Color terms vary: Antiquorum calls case 146'243 beige, while Christie's calls the same dial pink.

Rolex 3353 steel Oyster Perpetual, salmon dial with Roman numerals at 12, 3, 6 and 9 — Sotheby's case 146'235, salmon dial and Roman numerals

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown

The catalogued examples measure 28 or 29 mm, depending on the listing. Christie's describes a concave bezel, screw back, and screw-down crown on case 146'243. Antiquorum describes that case's back as screwed down and its crown as screwed down. Several catalogues describe the lugs as hooded or scalloped.

Christie's and Antiquorum both state that case 146'243 is signed Oyster Watch Co., while the dial and movement are signed Rolex. That signature combination is documented on case 146'243. Each other case needs its own record before assigning a signature pattern.

Case flank and crown, Sotheby's case 146'235
Caseback, Sotheby's case 146'235

Bracelets and packaging

The auction descriptions record different sale-day accessories: a stainless-steel Oyster bracelet with case 146'243 at Antiquorum in 2006; an associated steel bracelet and Rolex deployant clasp with that same watch at Christie's in 2015; and a riveted expanding Oyster bracelet with case 44'249 at Antiquorum in 2008. The listings record the bracelets present at sale; original delivery and reference-wide fitment remain unverified.

Antiquorum's 2006 lot for case 146'243 included a box and detail leaflet. This documents what accompanied one watch at that sale; it does not identify a 3353-specific packaging set.

Auction record

Sale	Lot	Case no.	Catalogued configuration	Estimate	Result
Antiquorum, Geneva, 14 May 2006	88	146'243	Steel, beige Arabic subsidiary-seconds dial, Cal. 520, 19 jewels	CHF 10,000–15,000	CHF 17,700
Christie's, Geneva, 11 May 2015	149	146'243	Steel, pink Arabic subsidiary-seconds dial, Cal. 520, 19 jewels; catalogue identifies the 2006 Antiquorum appearance	CHF 10,000–20,000	CHF 12,500
Antiquorum, Geneva, 16 March 2008	284	44'249	Steel and pink gold; off-white applied-index dial, subsidiary seconds; 18-jewel 8¾-ligne movement, caliber not stated	CHF 11,000–13,000	CHF 11,400
Antiquorum, Geneva, 11 November 2012	568	201'920	Steel and yellow gold; silver baton/Roman dial, centre seconds; 18-jewel 8¾-ligne movement, caliber not stated	CHF 3,500–5,500	not shown
Sotheby's, New York, 10 December 2013	271	not stated	Yellow gold, silver Arabic/baton subsidiary-seconds dial; listed as Cal. 8970	USD 6,000–8,000	USD 9,375
Sotheby's, “100 Years of Oyster,” lot 203	203	146'235	Steel, salmon dial with Roman 12/3/6/9, Cal. 520, 19 jewels	USD 7,000–14,000	hidden on public listing

Antiquorum records case 146'243 in 2006, and Christie's identifies the same watch in 2015. Sotheby's case 146'235 is a separate case-numbered example. The indexed auction record includes more 3353 sales than those shown here; this table selects records that document distinct case materials, dial layouts, and movement descriptions.

Gallery

Steel Rolex 3353 Oyster Perpetual with hooded lugs
Sotheby's case 146'235, salmon dial with Roman numerals
Caseback, Sotheby's case 146'235
Case flank and crown, Sotheby's case 146'235

Sources