Rolex Oyster Perpetual 6085
Oyster Perpetual → 6085
Rolex used reference 6085 on several Oyster Perpetual watches catalogued from circa 1948 to 1955. The surviving listings show steel, gold and steel-and-gold cases, with dials ranging from a cream “waffle” texture to a black dial and Phillips’s cloisonné Dragon. Auction houses most often identify Cal. 645; two dealer listings call their movements A260. The records do not establish whether those labels reflect different movements or catalogue practice.
Core facts
| detail | documented examples |
|---|---|
| reference | 6085 |
| family | Oyster Perpetual; the Movement guide groups it with the semi-Bubbleback references |
| catalogue dates | circa 1948, circa 1951, 1952, circa 1953 and circa 1955 examples; not a production span |
| case sizes | 33mm in Phillips and Schmitt-Horan; 34mm in Christie’s, Hodinkee and Dorotheum; 32mm in Sotheby’s |
| case materials | Stainless steel, 14k or 18k gold, and one auction-catalogued steel-and-gold case |
| movements | Auction catalogues identify Cal. 645 with 17 or 20 jewels; Hodinkee and Amsterdam Vintage Watches list A260 on separate watches |
| documented dials | Cream waffle 3-6-9, silvered dart-marker, black luminous, chronometer-signed gold, and cloisonné Dragon |
Where it sits in the line
Reference 6085 belongs to the early-1950s Oyster Perpetual group. The Movement guide places it among the semi-Bubbleback references; the auction records describe individual two-part or screw-back Oyster cases rather than a single case specification for the whole reference. It is listed alongside refs. 6098 and 6084 in the Oyster Perpetual family index, but the surviving 6085 records show more case and dial variety than the old “gold waffle-dial sibling” description suggested.
Production outline
Auction and dealer catalogues assign individual watches dates from circa 1948 through circa 1955. Christie’s dates a 14k gold example to circa 1948. Hodinkee lists a steel waffle-dial watch circa 1951; Phillips and Schmitt-Horan describe gold watches dated 1952; Dorotheum catalogued a steel-and-gold example circa 1953; Sotheby’s dates another gold example circa 1955. These catalogue estimates do not establish the reference’s production endpoints.
Case, bezel, crystal, and crown
The recorded cases measure 32–34mm. The examples include steel, 14k gold, 18k gold and a two-tone steel-and-gold case. Hodinkee describes an engine-turned bezel and Plexiglass crystal on its 34mm steel watch. Christie’s records a two-part 34mm 14k gold case with screw-down back and a “Super Oyster” crown. Dorotheum describes screw-down back and crown on its circa-1953 steel-and-gold lot, but notes that the reference number is illegible on that watch.
Dial examples
| source and date | dial and case details |
|---|---|
| Hodinkee Shop, circa 1951 | 34mm steel; cream waffle texture, 3-6-9 numerals, radium lume and Alpha hands; engine-turned bezel |
| Christie’s, circa 1948 | 34mm 14k gold; black dial with applied gold markers, luminous outer indices and sweep seconds |
| Schmitt-Horan, circa 1952 | 33mm 18k yellow gold; silvered dart-marker dial and luminous gold Alpha hands |
| Phillips, 1952 | 33mm 18k yellow gold with cloisonné enamel Dragon dial; gold bracelet |
| Amsterdam Vintage Watches, listed as 1953 | 34mm 18k yellow gold bracelet watch; chronometer-signed dial with radium markers, faceted hands and pointed indices |
| Dorotheum, catalogued circa 1953 | 34mm steel and gold; cream dial with applied Arabic numerals and hour markers, central seconds; the dial is refinished and the reference number is illegible |
The cream waffle dial belongs to the Hodinkee example. It is one documented configuration, not a reference-wide standard. The Dragon dial is likewise specific to the Phillips watch; Phillips identifies the enamel work as a cloisonné dial and records the watch as case 769206.
Movement notes
Auction catalogues identify Cal. 645 on several 6085s. Christie’s and Phillips list 20 jewels; Schmitt-Horan also lists 20; Dorotheum lists 17. Hodinkee calls its circa-1951 steel watch Cal. A260, and Amsterdam Vintage Watches uses the same label for a 1953 gold example. The Movement guide distinguishes Cal. 645 from the A.260 size code and records the competing catalogue descriptions. Without a readable movement marking for each watch, keep the attribution tied to its own listing rather than assigning one caliber to every 6085.
Sotheby’s 2024 listing for a circa-1955 gold ref. 6085 says “automatic, 2 jewels.” That is an outlier against the other 6085 catalogue descriptions, so it is recorded as the wording of that lot rather than a movement specification.
Auction record
| sale | catalogue description | result |
|---|---|---|
| Christie’s, lot 2762 | Circa-1948 14k gold ref. 6085; black dial; Cal. 645, 20 jewels | Result not shown in the accessible lot text |
| Phillips, Geneva Watch Auction Four, lot 157 | 1952 18k gold “Dragon”; cloisonné dial; Cal. 645, 20 jewels | CHF 670,000 |
| Schmitt-Horan, auction 1019, lot 450 | Circa-1952 18k yellow gold; silvered dial; Cal. 645, 20 jewels | USD 2,400 |
| Dorotheum, lot 145-057275/0001 | Catalogued circa 1953; steel and gold; Cal. 645, 17 jewels; case reference illegible | EUR 2,470 including buyer’s premium and VAT |
Related references
- Oyster Perpetual 6098
- Oyster Perpetual 6084
- Oyster Perpetual family index
- Movement reference
- Serial numbers by year
Sources
- Hodinkee Shop, “1951 Rolex Oyster Perpetual Reference 6085 With ‘Waffle’ Dial” — case, dial and A260 attribution for one sold watch.
- Phillips, Geneva Watch Auction Four, lot 157 — 1952 Dragon-dial watch, case, movement and result.
- Christie’s, lot 2762 — circa-1948 gold example with black dial and Cal. 645.
- Schmitt-Horan, auction 1019, lot 450 — circa-1952 gold example with Cal. 645 and sale result.
- Dorotheum, lot 145-057275/0001 — circa-1953 steel-and-gold example, Cal. 645, condition and result; reference number illegible.
- Amsterdam Vintage Watches, “Rolex Oyster Perpetual 6085” — 1953 gold example and A260 attribution.
- Sotheby’s, lot 556 — circa-1955 gold example; its two-jewel movement description is an outlier.