Rolex 1013 Oyster Perpetual

Reference:1013

Gold Rolex Oyster Perpetual 1013 with a patterned bezel and Oyster bracelet — Rago’s 1978-attributed Sigma-dial example.

The 1013 is a gold, time-only Oyster Perpetual with a patterned bezel. Auction and editorial records date individual watches from circa 1957 to 1978; the production endpoints remain unknown. Catalogues identify Cal. 1560 and Cal. 1570, but the changeover date is not established.

Recorded examples include yellow- and pink-gold cases and silver, black, champagne, gold and white dials. The bezel has a repeated pattern; published descriptions call it fluted or engine-turned.

Core facts

Detail	Documented details
Reference	1013, Oyster Perpetual, no date
Documented dates	Auction and editorial examples dated circa 1957, 1962, 1966, 1968, 1969 and 1978; these are individual attributions, not production limits
Movement	Cal. 1560 and Cal. 1570 are named in catalogue records; changeover date unknown
Case	Yellow-gold and one pink-gold example; published dimensions for individual watches range from 35 to 36 mm
Bezel	Patterned. Sources variously call it fluted or engine-turned
Crystal	Acrylic, stated in Heritage’s circa-1957 lot
Bracelet	Sale examples include a 14K-gold Rolex bracelet, a riveted Oyster and a Jubilee; original delivery fitment is not established

Where it sits in the line

The 1013 is the patterned-bezel gold companion to the smooth-bezel 1012. Charlie Dunne’s 1018 guide gives both watches as 36 mm. Other records vary: an EveryWatch transcript of a 2020 Sotheby’s lot reports 35 mm for case 1,488,067; European Watch Company lists 35.5 mm; several other 1013 records say 36 mm. Watch-Wiki groups the reference in a 34 mm entry without a separate measurement. These are item-level descriptions; the available records do not resolve the spread.

Hodinkee’s account of a mid-1960s Rolex catalogue calls the 1013 bezel engine-turned. The reproduced catalogue page shows the patterned surface, while Hodinkee’s other 1013 articles and several auction records call it fluted. The image establishes the pattern, not Rolex’s preferred term.

Production outline

Heritage dates case 488,087 to circa 1957; Antiquorum dates case 952,437 to circa 1962. Hodinkee describes a 1966 example, while Christie’s and Gazette Drouot catalogue watches as circa 1968. Rago dates separate watches to 1969 and 1978; the later Sigma-dial example carries serial 5,266,934.

Rago dates serial 1,900,046 to 1969. The unofficial Pergola chart places that number in its 1968 band (1,720,977–1,938,064). The catalogue date and chart disagree on this watch; neither establishes a reference-wide production sequence. See the serial-number notes.

Movement notes

Heritage attributes Cal. 1560 to its circa-1957 watch. Antiquorum also lists Cal. 1560 for the circa-1962 example. Monaco Legend’s 1966 catalogue and Rago’s 1978 lot identify Cal. 1570. Gazette Drouot names Cal. 1570 on a watch dated circa 1968. These records document both calibres; the transition date remains unresolved. See Cal. 1560 and Cal. 1570.

Automatic movement photographed in a Rolex Oyster Perpetual 1013 — Movement photographed for Hodinkee’s 1966-attributed example.

Dial map

Heritage records a silver dial with applied gold markers. Christie’s describes its 1968 silvered dial as original in the condition report; Antiquorum identifies its 1962 dial as reprinted. Those are lot-specific assessments.

Black dials appear in Monaco Legend’s 1966 pink-gold lot and Rago’s 1969 yellow-gold lot. Rago’s 1978 watch has a champagne Sigma dial, and Gazette Drouot describes a gold dial on a circa-1968 example. A 1967 dealer listing describes a white dial and includes a Rolex service card dated 2021; the listing’s date and originality claims are seller attributions. Its photograph shows older “Officially Certified Chronometer” wording. These examples document watches on the market, not the complete factory dial range.

Champagne Sigma dial and patterned bezel on Rago’s 1978-attributed lot 506.
Black dial on Rago’s 1969-attributed lot 508.
White dial and older chronometer wording on a seller-described 1967 example.

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes

Catalogue measurements for individual 1013s range from 35 to 36 mm, while Watch-Wiki’s grouped 34 mm entry gives no separate 1013 measurement. Heritage specifies an acrylic crystal and screw-down caseback and crown on its circa-1957 watch. Antiquorum also describes a screw-down crown and caseback on its circa-1962 lot.

The recorded cases are yellow gold, apart from Monaco Legend’s pink-gold example. Antiquorum’s 14K figure refers to the bracelet; the case is catalogued as 18K yellow gold.

Rolex’s reproduced 1966 catalogue shows the pattern. Hodinkee and auction catalogues use both “engine-turned” and “fluted”; “patterned” describes the visible surface without choosing between those labels.

Rago lot 506 caseback and end links.
Between-lugs reference marking on Hodinkee’s 1966-attributed example.

Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes

The surviving sale records show different configurations: Antiquorum’s circa-1962 watch was on a 14K-gold Rolex bracelet, Rago’s 1978 Sigma-dial watch on a riveted Oyster, and Rago’s 1969 black-dial watch on a Jubilee. Heritage’s 1957 example was sold on a leather strap. These are sale configurations, with no evidence of original delivery or standard 1013 fitment.

Monaco Legend lists a box, booklets, tag and warranty with its 1966 pink-gold example. Christie's lists a box and packaging but no papers for its 1968 watch. Those lot descriptions record sale contents; a 1013-specific package is not established.

Gold Rolex bracelet on a 1013 Oyster Perpetual — Antiquorum’s circa-1962 lot was catalogued on this gold bracelet.

Historical market and auction record

Sale date	Sale record	Catalogued example	Result
24 October 2017	Heritage Auctions, lot 54155	Circa 1957, 18K yellow gold, silver dial, Cal. 1560	USD 2,750
4 November 2023	Antiquorum Geneva, lot 184	Circa 1962, 18K yellow gold, reprinted dial, Cal. 1560, 14K bracelet	CHF 6,250
30 May 2024	Christie's Geneva, lot 316	Circa 1968, yellow gold, silvered dial; no papers listed	CHF 6,300
10 February 2022	Rago, lot 508	1969-attributed yellow gold, black dial, Jubilee bracelet	USD 21,250
10 February 2022	Rago, lot 506	1978-attributed yellow gold, Sigma dial, Cal. 1570, riveted Oyster bracelet	USD 11,700

Gallery

Rago’s 1978-attributed Sigma-dial example.
Rago lot 506, champagne Sigma dial.
Rago lot 508, black dial.
Movement photograph of Hodinkee’s 1966-attributed example.
Between-lugs reference marking photographed for Hodinkee.
Rago lot 506 caseback and end links.
Antiquorum’s gold bracelet and 1013 case.
White dial on a dealer-described 1013.

Sources

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