Rolex 218239 Day-Date II
Day-Date › 218239
The 218239 is the white-gold Day-Date II, catalogued from 2008 until the 2015 transition to the Day-Date 40. It uses caliber 3156, a fluted white-gold bezel, and a white-gold President bracelet. Rolex has published no production total, so the relative population of white-gold, yellow-gold, and Everose examples cannot be quantified from the reviewed evidence.
Core facts
| detail | value |
|---|---|
| reference | 218239 |
| family | Day-Date (Day-Date II, 41mm) |
| production | 2008 to 2015 |
| movement | caliber 3156, 31 jewels, 28,800 vph, ~48h power reserve, double quickset, COSC chronometer |
| case | 41mm 18k white gold Oyster |
| crystal | sapphire with Cyclops |
| bezel | fluted white gold |
| crown | Twinlock screw-down |
| bracelet | white gold President, three semi-circular links, concealed Crownclasp |
| water resistance | 100m |
| dial | chocolate Roman, white Roman, factory silver diamond and black diamond, and a blue wave layout |
| siblings | 218238 (yellow gold), 218235 (Everose), 218206 (platinum), 218348 / 218349 (factory diamond bezel) |
| diamond-bezel counterpart | 218349, the white-gold factory diamond-bezel reference |
| successor | 228239 (Day-Date 40, caliber 3255, from 2015) |
Where it sits in the line
The 218239 is the white-gold member of the Day-Date II generation introduced in 2008, with a 41 mm case. Its siblings are the yellow-gold 218238, the Everose 218235 and the platinum 218206, and it shares the fluted bezel, the caliber and the bracelet architecture with the two gold references. White gold and platinum use different documented bezel and dial combinations in this generation. The platinum 218206 is associated with a smooth bezel and ice-blue dial; the 218239 uses a fluted white-gold bezel.
The reference to keep separate from it is the 218349, the white-gold Day-Date II with a factory diamond bezel. That is a different reference number, not a 218239 with stones added. Listings citing a 218339 should be checked against the case, dial, and documentation; the reviewed Day-Date II catalogues do not list that reference.
Production outline
The Day-Date II launched at Baselworld 2008 alongside the Datejust II and ran seven years, the shortest life of any modern Day-Date, ending in 2015 when the Day-Date 40 replaced it at 40mm. The 218239 spans that whole window. Rolex switched to scrambled serial numbers across the catalogue in 2010, so the bulk of documented white-gold examples carry random serials; one dated 2014 example is representative of the later production.
No production figure has been published for the 218239, Dealer listings are not a production census and do not establish relative factory output.
Movement notes
The caliber 3156 is the movement specified for the Day-Date II references in the reviewed technical sources. It takes the caliber 3155 architecture and widens the main plate by roughly 2.5mm to suit the 41mm case, keeping 31 jewels, a 28,800 vph beat, about 48 hours of reserve, double quickset for day and date, and COSC certification. The balance is Glucydur with Microstella screws, the hairspring is the blue Parachrom, and Paraflex shock protection is fitted. The 3156 was introduced with the generation in 2008 and retired in 2015 and 2016, when the Day-Date 40 moved to the caliber 3255. There is no white-gold-specific movement; the 218239 runs what the 218238 runs, and the Reference:Movements page holds the caliber lineage.
Dial map
The documented white-gold dials divide into plain-marker layouts and factory diamond ones, with a wave-pattern dial sitting slightly apart.
| dial | markers | code where documented | notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| chocolate | Roman | 218239-0040 | documented chocolate Roman configuration |
| white | Roman | 218239-0041 | documented white Roman configuration |
| silver | diamond | 218239-0006 | factory diamond hour markers |
| black | diamond | not in the published roster | factory diamond markers on black, documented on the market |
| blue wave | Arabic | not in the published roster | wave-pattern ground, documented on a dated 2014 example with box and papers |
Chocolate Roman and white Roman dials are both documented on the 218239. Chocolate is also documented on Everose references, while the white Roman examples provide a different dial and metal combination within the Day-Date II range.
The blue wave dial deserves a note. Wave-pattern grounds appear across the Day-Date II range, including on the diamond-bezel references, and a dated 2014 white-gold example documents the texture on the plain fluted-bezel 218239 as well. It does not appear in the published dial-code roster, which lists seventeen codes across the generation and three for the 218239. Between the black diamond dial and the blue wave, at least two factory white-gold layouts sit outside that roster, so the codes are a starting point rather than a full accounting.
Aftermarket work is common on this reference and needs separating from factory configuration. White-gold 218239 cases turn up with diamond-paved Roman dials, custom-set diamond bezels, baguette dials and fully diamond-set President bracelets, none of it Rolex work. A factory diamond dial such as the silver or black layouts is a catalogue variant with a code behind it; an aftermarket paved dial is later jewellery. Visual inspection alone is not enough to establish factory setting. Use the model code, Rolex documentation, movement and case evidence, and a qualified inspection.
Case, bezel, crystal, and crown
The case is 41mm in 18k white gold, with a sapphire crystal, a Cyclops over the date and a Twinlock screw-down crown, rated to 100m. Published thickness figures for the Day-Date II run between about 11.9mm and 13mm depending on whether the measurement is taken at the midcase or over the caseback. The bezel is fluted, the same format the yellow-gold and Everose references wear, and on white gold the fluting is the main thing that tells the watch apart from a large Datejust at a glance.
The 41 mm case distinguishes the Day-Date II from the 36 mm generation. The 2015 successor moved to the 40 mm Day-Date 40 case. Case dimensions and wrist fit should be taken from the individual watch rather than from collector preference.
Bracelets, end links, and clasps
The 218239 wears the white-gold President, three semi-circular links scaled to the 41mm head, closed by the concealed Crownclasp that leaves only the coronet visible. As on any President, a clasp date code dates the bracelet rather than the head, and service over a decade or more can put a later bracelet on an earlier case. The cross-family detail sits on Reference:Bracelets.
Special branches
White-gold President configuration
The 218239 combines a solid white-gold case, fluted bezel, President bracelet, and Day-Date display. The platinum 218206 uses a different bezel and dial combination; the two references should be identified from their metal, bezel, dial, and movement evidence.
Factory diamond versus aftermarket stones
The cited factory diamond examples are silver and black diamond dials with the standard fluted bezel. Paved dials, set bezels, and diamond bracelets require separate documentation and should not be assigned a factory configuration from appearance alone. The 218349 is the separate white-gold Day-Date II reference with a factory diamond bezel.
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Factory black diamond dial, a layout absent from the published dial-code roster. -
Factory silver diamond dial, catalogued as 218239-0006.
Auction and market evidence
The reviewed auction evidence is stronger for the platinum 218206 than for the 218239. No 218239 lot was confirmed in the records checked here; that is a research limit, not proof that no such lot exists.
Asking prices vary with dial, condition, accessories, and service history. The reviewed material does not establish a reference-wide price band or a reliable ranking against the Everose 218235 and yellow-gold 218238 siblings.
Related references
- Day-Date 218235: 2008–2015 — Everose Day-Date II.
- Day-Date 218238: 2008–2015 — yellow gold Day-Date II.
- Day-Date 218206: 2008–2015 — platinum Day-Date II.
- Day-Date 118238: 2000–2019.
- Day-Date 118235: 2005–2019.
- Day-Date 118208: 2000–2019.
See also the Day-Date family index, movement reference, bracelet & clasp guide, and serial numbers by year.
Gallery
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White-gold Day-Date II 218239 with chocolate Roman dial -
Blue wave-pattern Arabic dial -
Factory black diamond dial
-
Factory silver diamond dial
Sources
- The Vintage Rolex Field Manual — Colin A. White, Morning Tundra
- Rolex Day-Date Volume (Mondani Editore) — Mondani Family, Guido Mondani Editore
- Day-Date — The Presidential Rolex — Pucci Papaleo Editore, Spin Edizioni, 2015-05
- Monochrome editorial, "In-Depth: The History of the Rolex Day-Date, The Presidential Watch", Monochrome Watches
- Sotheby's editorial, "The Rolex Day-Date: A Complete Collector's Guide", Sotheby's
- Italian Watch Spotter editorial, "The History of the Rolex Day-Date", Italian Watch Spotter
- aBlogtoWatch editorial, "Rolex Datejust II + Day-Date II Review", aBlogtoWatch
- Sotheby's Watches Department, "Sotheby's Origins 2025 — Day-Date II Royal Khanjar 218206 Sultan of Oman commission", Sotheby's, 2025
- Bonhams Watches Department, "Bonhams 218206 Platinum c.2010 production-spec", Bonhams
- Watchbase editorial, "Rolex Caliber 3156 — Watchbase Reference Entry", Watchbase
- Watch-Wiki contributors, "Rolex 3156 — Watch-Wiki", Watch-Wiki
- Millenary Watches editorial, "Rolex Caliber 3156 — Millenary Watches", Millenary Watches
- Watchbase editorial, "Rolex Day-Date II — Watchbase Reference List", Watchbase
- Beckertime editorial, "Rolex Decades: The 90s Day-Date vs the 2000s Day-Date", Beckertime
- Everest Bands editorial, "Guide to Rolex Sizes — Case and Lug Dimensions by Reference", Everest Bands
- OMI Jewelry editorial, "Rolex Day-Date II 218239 white gold — dealer dial roster (factory vs aftermarket)", OMI Jewelry
- Huntington Watch editorial, "2014 Rolex 218239 Day-Date II Blue Wave President White Gold 41mm", Huntington Watch
- Prestige Time editorial, "Rolex Day-Date II 41mm Everose Gold 218235 Black Roman President — full specification", Prestige Time
- European Watch Company editorial, "Rolex 218235 Day-Date II 18K Everose Pink Roman Dial", European Watch Company