Rolex 5510 Submariner
Submariner › 5510
The 5510 is a steel Submariner with an 8mm winding crown, no crown guards and caliber 1530. It followed the 6538 and is usually dated around 1958–1959, although published end dates differ. Examples include black gilt dials and Explorer-style 3-6-9 dials. Sotheby's attributes one Explorer-dial watch to Royal Australian Navy issue.
Core facts
| detail | value |
|---|---|
| reference | 5510 |
| family | Submariner (no date) |
| production | Around 1958–1959 in Phillips and Antiquorum accounts; later end dates are discussed below |
| total produced | No verified factory total; published estimates differ |
| serial observations | Both 361,xxx and 362,xxx examples appear in auction catalogues |
| case | approximately 38mm |
| crown | 8mm, marked Brevet |
| crown guards | none |
| movement | Caliber 1530; 25 jewels in the Phillips examples, 26 in one Sotheby's catalogue entry |
| depth rating | 200m / 660ft dial rating |
| crystal | acrylic |
Where it sits in the line
The 6538 and 5510 both have large crowns without protective shoulders. The 5510 uses caliber 1530. Phillips's 2024 catalogue dates its replacement by the crown-guard 5512 to 1959.
The 5508 is the contemporary small-crown model. Because the 5510 and 6538 look similar, the engraved reference number matters more than the outline of the case.
Production outline
Phillips dates the 5510's introduction to 1958 and replacement to 1959. Antiquorum's 2019 catalogue gives late 1958–1959, while Horologium estimates the third quarter of 1958 through late 1960. Bonhams's 2007 essay extends production into the mid-1960s without identifying a dated late example. These accounts do not establish a precise factory start or end date.
Case evidence is more specific. Bonhams records inner casebacks stamped 1.1958; Phillips lists cases 361,913 and 362,218, and Antiquorum's tropical example is 361,848. The reference cannot be identified by a 362,xxx serial alone. Antiquorum's 2019 entry lists the outlying case number 301,833 and a 34mm diameter; those catalogue figures need confirmation against the watch.
Phillips's 2021 essay estimates fewer than 300 watches; Fratello gives 500. Neither entry identifies a factory production record for its figure. The total remains unverified.
Movement notes
The auction examples cited here use automatic caliber 1530. Antiquorum's 2008 description lists a lever escapement, Breguet balance spring and shock protection. See the caliber 1530 guide for the movement family.
Phillips lists 25 in its 2021 and 2024 examples; Sotheby's lists 26 for case 362,231 in its 2008 catalogue. Phillips also mentions chronometer-certified 5510s, but does not identify one in that essay. The catalogue statement alone cannot establish the dial or movement configuration of those watches.
Dial map
The dial descriptions below overlap: a gilt dial can also have a Swiss-only signature or have aged brown.
Standard gilt
The usual layout has luminous geometric hour markers and gilt text on a black dial. Bonhams's 2007 example has Mercedes hands and a white seconds hand; Christie's case 361,946 has white depth text beneath gilt wording.
Swiss only
Phillips and Antiquorum describe dials signed Swiss beneath six o'clock. Swiss-only signatures also appear on the gilt dials described above.
Tropical gilt
Collectors use 'tropical' for a dial whose colour has changed, commonly from black to brown. Antiquorum's 2023 lot 460 is a brown-dial 5510, case 361,848. The cause of the colour change is unspecified.
Explorer dial (RAN MilSub)
Sotheby's 2023 lot 107, case 362,153, has a 3-6-9 Explorer-style dial and fixed strap bars peened against the outside of the case. Sotheby's attributes it to Royal Australian Navy issue. Its statement that four RAN 5510s were known refers to the time the watch entered the Hammer collection, not a current count.
Antiquorum explicitly identifies the Explorer dial on case 362,187 as reprinted. The catalogue gives no Australian Navy provenance for it.
Other printing and dial descriptions
Bonhams's 2007 essay mentions later white-print dials, but its own lot has gilt text and the essay supplies no dated example of the claimed later type. Sotheby's 2008 lot 138, case 362,231, is catalogued as an 'exclamation point' dial with a dot below the six-hour marker. The catalogue does not establish when that dial was fitted.
Case, bezel, crystal, and crown
-
The unguarded 8mm crown and gilt bezel insert, worn on the wrist -
Screw-down Oyster caseback, smooth exterior with no date stamp — Phillips New York, 2021, lot 27
Auction measurements are usually about 37–38mm without the crown. The case has no crown guards and uses an 8mm crown marked Brevet, meaning patent. Phillips gives 38mm for both its 2021 and 2024 examples; Bonhams gives 37mm for its 2007 lot.
The bezel rotates in both directions. Auction descriptions record black inserts, including red-triangle examples, and an acrylic crystal.
The caseback screws into the case. Bonhams records an internal 1.1958 stamp on both its early example and the watch privately owned by naval diver B. Turner. Turner's caseback also bears his name and service number. The stamp dates that caseback; it does not establish the sale date or originality of the bracelet.
Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes
Auction watches carry several bracelet configurations. Phillips's 2021 lot has a riveted Oyster bracelet, end links stamped 65 and a clasp stamped 2.58. Its 2024 lot has a 'Big Logo' bracelet and a 2.59 clasp. Original delivery of those bracelets is not established by their dates.
Bonhams's B. Turner watch has a 93150 bracelet with 580 end pieces. Antiquorum's 2019 example has a riveted bracelet with a 1.67 clasp. The latter clasp is later than the catalogue's circa-1958 date for the watch, but the listing does not say who fitted it. A later bracelet is not necessarily a documented Rolex service replacement.
End-link numbers identify components; they are not year codes. A clasp date can help assess whether a bracelet is contemporary with a watch, but cannot prove that Rolex supplied the two together. Antiquorum lists an original box with its 2023 tropical example; the description does not establish a box type exclusive to the 5510.
Bond association
The 5510 is sometimes called a 'James Bond' Submariner because it resembles the big-crown 6538. Horologium notes that clear evidence of Sean Connery wearing a 5510 is absent. The nickname alone is not screen provenance.
Special branches
The Australian Navy attribution above is different from the provenance of Bonhams's B. Turner watch. Bonhams says Turner bought his 5510 in Singapore in 1958 and used it during Royal Navy service. The lot included a diving history sheet matching his engraved service number and Rolex correspondence from 1979.
Historical market and auction record
| Sale | Lot | Year | Serial | Description | Published result or estimate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phillips Geneva XX | 220 | 2024 | 362,218 | Black lacquer dial; Big Logo bracelet | Result: CHF 190,500 |
| Phillips New York | 27 | 2021 | 361,913 | Gilt two-line dial; Ride the Wave collection | Result: USD 144,900 |
| Antiquorum New York | 163 (sale 204) | 2008 | not listed | Black dial; caliber 1530 | Result: USD 155,000 |
| Bonhams New York | 115 (sale 15422) | 2007 | not listed | Gilt dial; white seconds hand | Result: USD 93,600 including premium |
| Bonhams London | 140 (sale 16805) | 2009 | 362,252 | B. Turner; 93150 bracelet, 580 end pieces | Result: GBP 24,000 including premium |
| Antiquorum Monaco | 248 (sale 314) | 2018 | 362,187 | Reprinted Explorer dial | Result: EUR 33,488 |
| Antiquorum Geneva | 460 (sale 360) | 2023 | 361,848 | Brown dial; bracelet dated 58 | Estimate: CHF 120,000–180,000 |
| Sotheby's Important Watches | 107 | 2023 | 362,153 | RAN attribution; Explorer dial; fixed bars | Estimate: USD 160,000–320,000 |
| Sotheby's Hiroshi Fujiwara | — | 2023 | — | Gilt dial; caliber 1530 | Estimate: HKD 400,000–550,000 |
| Antiquorum Monaco | 315 (sale 322) | 2019 | 301,833 (catalogue) | Swiss-only dial; clasp 1.67; catalogue dimensions require confirmation | Estimate: EUR 150,000–170,000 |
| Harrington's | — | Not stated | 362,000 | Black dial; riveted bracelet | Result: $93,125 including premium; currency not stated |
Results and estimates are labelled separately. The entries span different currencies, sale years and watch conditions; they do not establish a current price range.
Related references
- Submariner 6538, big crown
- Submariner 6536, early model without crown guards
- Submariner 5508, small crown
- Submariner 6205, early Submariner
- Submariner 6200, big crown
- Submariner 6204, early Submariner
See also the Submariner family index, movement reference, bracelet & clasp guide, and serial numbers by year.
Sources
- Phillips Geneva XX, lot 220, 2024 — Phillips
- Phillips New York, lot 27, 2021 — Phillips
- Bonhams New York, lot 115, 6 December 2007 — Bonhams
- Bonhams London, lot 140, 10 June 2009 — Bonhams
- Antiquorum New York, lot 163, 17 April 2008 — Antiquorum
- Antiquorum Monaco, lot 248, July 2018 — Antiquorum
- Antiquorum Monaco, lot 315, 16 July 2019 — Antiquorum
- Antiquorum Geneva, lot 460, May 2023 — Antiquorum
- Sothebys Important Watches, lot 107, December 2023 — Sotheby's
- Sothebys Geneva, lot 138, 2008 — Sotheby's
- Sothebys Personal Effects of Hiroshi Fujiwara, 2023 — Sotheby's
- Harringtons reference 5510, case 362000 — Harrington's
- Christies reference 5510, case 361946 — Christie's
- Rolex 5510: Some notes — Horologium
- Top 5: The Rarest Steel Rolex Submariner References — Fratello