Rolex Chronograph 2508

A checked version of this page, approved on 6 October 2026, was based on this revision.

Yellow-gold Rolex 2508 retailed by Astrua, photographed dial-on — Ref. 2508 case 49'412, attributed to Astrua in Turin. Photo: Antiquorum, lot 240 (2019)

The 2508 is a two-register, two-pusher Rolex chronograph in a round snap-back case. Auction catalogues document steel, yellow-gold and pink-gold examples, with oval or olive-shaped pushers on some and rectangular pushers on others. Auction dates place individual examples from about 1935 through 1947; factory production dates remain undocumented.

Auction catalogues variously give 13- or 14-ligne movements and name Valjoux 22 or VZ. The Vintage Rolex Field Manual lists V23. The surviving records leave the 2508 without a settled caliber.

Core facts

Detail	Documented record
Reference	2508
Family	Early non-Oyster Rolex chronograph
Dated examples	Christie's dates one case circa 1935; auction catalogues also describe examples into the 1940s. No factory production endpoints are established.
Movement	Manual chronograph. Published identifications conflict; see Movement notes.
Registers and controls	Two registers and two case pushers in the catalogued examples reviewed
Case	Round, three-body snap-back case; not a screw-down Oyster case
Documented metals	Stainless steel, 18-carat yellow gold and 18-carat pink gold
Measured diameters	Auction descriptions range from 35 to 38 mm. Measurements vary by watch and catalogue.
Dial	Silvered, black, rose and cream examples; tachymeter and telemeter scales appear in different layouts
Strap or bracelet	Leather straps are common in the reviewed photographs. One steel bracelet is described by Phillips as a 1950s brick-link bracelet; original 2508 bracelet fitment is not established.

Where it sits in the line

Rolex had made single-pusher wrist chronographs before the 2508. The 2508 uses two registers and two operating pushers, a layout that separates it from those earlier models.

The 2508 belongs to the earlier non-Oyster group. Its snap-back case differs from later screw-down Oyster chronographs. Christie's and Antiquorum use “Anti-Magnetic” or “Anti-Magnetique” in lot titles, and some photographed dials carry similar text. The spelling varies across dials and lot titles; the catalogues provide no magnetic-resistance test results.

Production outline

Christie's dates steel case 034'557 to circa 1935. A 1930s Rolex advertisement reproduced in Guido Mondani's Master Rolex lists a 14-ligne, two-button chronograph in steel or 18-carat yellow or pink gold, and shows the 2508 at 38 mm. The advertisement shows how Rolex presented the model in the Italian market; the auction records provide the dated examples discussed here.

The dated auction records extend into the 1940s. Antiquorum estimated the same steel case 041'338 at circa 1947 in 2019 and circa 1942 when it reappeared in 2021. These estimates date the individual watches; the production span remains undated.

Movement notes

The published movement labels vary by watch. Phillips calls case 034'609 a 14-ligne, 17-jewel movement; the same case appeared in a 2013 Christie's catalogue, so those are two descriptions of one watch. Christie's lists a 13-ligne movement for gold case 51'348. Antiquorum describes case 49'412 as a 14-ligne movement based on Valjoux VZ. Other lot records use Valjoux 22, while Colin A. White's The Vintage Rolex Field Manual lists V23.

The Antiquorum photographs show the movements, while published identifications remain inconsistent. The reference has no settled caliber assignment.

Movement shown in Antiquorum case 49'412; catalogue attribution retained
Open movement in steel case 041'338; published caliber labels differ

Dial map

The photographed and catalogued examples include silvered, matte black, rose and cream dials. Layouts vary: some use Arabic numerals, some mix numerals with baton or dagger markers, and the scales include tachymeter and telemeter tracks in different colors and positions.

Two retailer signatures have been recorded. Phillips catalogued case 25'643 with a Cravanzola Roma dial; Antiquorum identified “ROLEX ASTRUA” on case 49'412 and attributed it to Astrua in Turin. The listings document the signatures on two individual watches. Neither source identifies a factory branch or gives a chain of custody for the dial.

Silver-coloured dial, steel case 041'338; Antiquorum described it as silver in 2021
Pink-gold case, Antiquorum 2020
Cream dial and applied gold indexes, case 37'128, Antiquorum 2025

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown

The reviewed catalogues describe a round, three-body case with a snap-on back. Examples have oval or olive-shaped pushers, rectangular or flat pushers, and, in one catalogue, square pushers. Auction essays describe oval and rectangular forms as successive, yet watches catalogued around 1937 appear with both shapes. Diameter does not sort them reliably. Phillips records oval-pusher cases at both 35.2 and 37 mm.

Auction photographs show fluted crowns and reference and serial markings on the backs of some cases. Antiquorum reports that other serials appear around the caseback edge; the records do not date that change in placement. The cited sources do not identify a standard crystal material or document present-day water resistance.

Rectangular pushers and case profile, case 49'412, Antiquorum 2019
Case flank and pusher profile, case 041'338, Antiquorum 2019
Outer caseback, yellow-gold case 49'412
Outer caseback markings, steel case 041'338
Case profile, yellow-gold case 37'128, Antiquorum 2025

Bracelets, clasps, and packaging

The reviewed auction photographs mostly show leather straps. Phillips dates the brick-link bracelet on steel case 034'609 to the 1950s; that dates the bracelet, while original delivery with the watch remains unestablished. Christie’s records a green presentation box with one example, which documents the lot rather than a reference-wide package.

Special branches

The named branches in the reviewed records are two retailer-signed watches: Astrua on case 49'412 and Cravanzola Roma on case 25'643. The catalogues treat each as an individual example.

Auction record

Two watches recur in the auction record. Christie's and Phillips both catalogued steel case 034'609; Antiquorum offered steel case 041'338 twice and assigned it different dates. The table lists distinct cases, keeping each house's measurements and movement wording attached to its own lot.

Case	Catalogue description	Date and measurement as reported
034'557	Stainless steel; telemeter and tachymeter scales	Christie's estimates circa 1935; diameter not stated in the reviewed record
37'184	Pink gold, rose dial, oval pushers	Christie's estimates circa 1935; 36 mm; 14-ligne movement
25'643	Yellow gold, Cravanzola Roma signed dial, oval pushers	Phillips estimates circa 1936; 36 mm; 14-ligne, 17 jewels
034'609	Steel, silvered dial, oval pushers; also described with a 1950s brick-link bracelet	Christie's and Phillips date it 1937; Phillips gives 37 mm and 14-ligne, 17 jewels
51'348	Yellow gold, silvered dial, rectangular pushers	Christie's estimates circa 1937; 36 mm; 13-ligne, 17 jewels
49'412	Yellow gold, Astrua-signed dial, rectangular pushers	Antiquorum estimates circa 1938; 35.5 mm; 14-ligne Valjoux VZ
041'338	Steel, silver-coloured dial, rectangular pushers	Antiquorum's 2021 catalogue calls the dial silver and describes rectangular pushers; it gives 35.2 mm bezel diameter and a 14-ligne movement. The 2019 catalogue dates the same case circa 1947 and the 2021 catalogue circa 1942.
512'132	Steel, black dial, rectangular pushers	Phillips dates it 1946; 35.2 mm; Valjoux 22, 17 jewels
37'128	Yellow gold, cream dial, applied gold indexes	Antiquorum dates it 1936; 36 mm; 14-ligne, 17 jewels
418'292	Steel, rectangular pushers, Arabic numerals and red/blue scales	Bonhams estimates circa 1937; 35 mm; manual, 17 jewels

These catalogue dates are estimates for individual watches, and movement labels vary across the sources.

Gallery

Yellow-gold Astrua example, full dial view; Antiquorum 2019, lot 240
Same watch, angled view
Same watch, movement
Same watch, caseback
Steel case 041'338, Antiquorum 2019, lot 207
Same watch, dial detail; Antiquorum calls the dial silver in its 2021 catalogue
Same watch, case flank
Same watch, caseback
Same watch, movement
Pink-gold example, Antiquorum 2020, lot 379
Yellow-gold case 37'128, Antiquorum 2025, lot 383
Same watch, side view
Same watch, caseback

Sources