Rolex Oyster Perpetual Date 1500

A checked version of this page, approved on 8 October 2026, was based on this revision.

Steel Rolex Oyster Perpetual Date ref. 1500 with silver dial, date window and smooth bezel — Steel ref. 1500, Phillips Hong Kong, lot 909.

The ref. 1500 is a 34 mm Oyster Perpetual Date with a smooth bezel and date under a Cyclops lens. Auction records show steel and gold cases, several dial layouts, and more than one movement description. Catalogues place individual examples from circa 1962 into circa 1980; the production endpoints remain uncertain.

Core facts

detail	value
reference	1500
model	Oyster Perpetual Date
documented dates	individual auction estimates run from circa 1962 to circa 1980; not production limits
case	Oyster case with screw-down back and crown
diameter	usually catalogued at 34 or 35 mm; one Christie’s lot gives 36 mm
documented materials	stainless steel and 18K yellow gold; 14K examples have conflicting ref. 1500 / 1503 identifications
bezel	smooth, polished bezel in the Field Manual and photographed examples
crystal	acrylic/Plexiglas with Cyclops date magnifier, as described in an auction catalogue
date display	date aperture at 3 o’clock
movements	auction catalogues variously say 1560 or 1570; the Field Manual lists 1565 and 1575 for ref. 1500 in its caliber tables
bracelets	examples catalogued with 7205/57, 78350/557 and Jubilee bracelets; individual fitment is lot-specific

Where it sits in the line

Phillips describes ref. 1500 as the successor to the Oyster Perpetual Date ref. 6534 in 1960. The 1500 combines the Oyster case with an automatic date display and a smooth bezel. Phillips compares its size with the Datejust; auction measurements for the 1500 generally fall at 34–35 mm.

Production outline

Phillips dates a steel example to circa 1978 and a yellow-gold example to circa 1980. The steel watch came with a guarantee dated July 1980. The same Phillips essay that calls ref. 1500 the 6534’s 1960 successor gives 1976 as the end of production. Phillips’s circa-1978 and circa-1980 lots extend beyond that stated endpoint, so the catalogue record leaves the final production year unresolved.

Other auction records fill in the middle years: Monaco Legend dates a gold example to circa 1962; Antiquorum dates a steel watch to 1963; Christie’s records another as circa 1966; Antiquorum and Sotheby’s give circa 1969; and later examples are dated circa 1972–1974. Together they document examples across the period, while leaving the production sequence open.

Movement notes

Caliber naming varies by source. Monaco Legend lists Cal. 1560 in a circa-1962 gold ref. 1500, and Sotheby’s uses the same name for a circa-1969 steel watch. The Vintage Rolex Field Manual lists ref. 1500 under Cal. 1565 in one caliber-table entry and under Cal. 1575 in another. Later auction catalogues often call the movement Cal. 1570, including Phillips’s circa-1978 steel example and Antiquorum’s 1969–1974 records. Rolex used “1570” on the bridge of date-equipped 1575-family movements; movement and calendar-work inspection identifies the caliber on an individual watch. The sequence remains unclear in the available records.

Dial map

Auction photographs and descriptions document silver, grey, white and champagne dials with applied baton markers. They also show less common examples: a silver dial printed for the 1968 Cotton Bowl Classic; a UAE crest dial that Christie’s says was supplied to the Ministry of Defence; and a tropicalized silver dial with Eastern Arabic numerals. These catalogues describe individual watches; the order histories and production quantities remain undocumented. Christie’s gives 36 mm for the Eastern-numeral example, while other houses usually record 34–35 mm. That measurement remains a single-lot outlier.

The Cotton Bowl and UAE examples are shown below. Antiquorum identifies the game on the first dial; Christie’s describes the second as a Ministry of Defence watch and uses three names for its emblem: “Desert Eagle,” “Desert Hawk” and “Quraysh Hawk.”

Antiquorum, Hong Kong, lot 234: dial printed for the 1968 Cotton Bowl Classic
Christie’s, ref. 1500: UAE crest dial

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown

The Field Manual classifies the 1500 as a mid-size steel watch with a polished, smooth bezel. Auction catalogues document steel and 18K-gold cases. Christie’s and Antiquorum also record 14K-gold watches under 1500 or 1500/1503; the Christie’s caseback stamp and Antiquorum’s paired designation leave those case identities unresolved. Most measurements are 34 or 35 mm. Christie’s gives 36 mm for its Eastern Arabic-numeral lot; that measurement has not appeared in the other records reviewed here.

Christie’s describes a screw-down crown and screw-back case on its UAE-emblem example. Auction photographs show the low, smooth bezel and Cyclops lens over the date. Setdart describes a circa-1976 example with an acrylic crystal. The profile below belongs to Phillips’s circa-1978 steel example.

Case profile, Phillips Hong Kong, lot 909.

Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging

Auction records document a riveted Oyster bracelet 7205 with end links 57, an Oyster 78350 with 557 end links, and a Jubilee bracelet. These are observed combinations from individual lots. Antiquorum’s circa-1969 example has a 7205 bracelet stamped 69; the stamp dates the bracelet, not the watch head. Phillips’s circa-1978 steel example was catalogued on a 78350/557 bracelet and came with a guarantee dated 1980, box and printed material.

Christie’s lists a circa-1966 14K-gold watch under ref. 1500 with a JB Champion bracelet. The inside caseback is stamped 1503, so the watch and bracelet stay tied to that unresolved case identity; see Special branches. A caseback and bracelet view from the Phillips lot appears below. Its caseback is closed and bears a factory sticker; the photograph shows no movement.

Caseback and bracelet view, Phillips Hong Kong, lot 909.

Special branches

Christie’s 2014 title calls the UAE emblem “Desert Eagle,” its details say “Desert Hawk,” and the essay calls it the “Quraysh Hawk.” The catalogue says the watch was supplied to the UAE Ministry of Defence. “UAE crest” follows the photographed dial without choosing among those labels.

Antiquorum’s 1973 gold watch is catalogued jointly as refs. 1500/1503. The Field Manual associates an engine-turned bezel with ref. 1503, while its 1500 entry specifies a polished bezel. Christie’s 2018 catalogue identifies a 14K-gold watch as ref. 1500, but its condition report says the inside caseback is stamped 1503. These records leave the 14K case assignment unresolved; the other 1500 records reviewed here show or describe a smooth bezel.

Historical market and auction record

watch date / sale date	house and lot	recorded example
circa 1962 estimate	Monaco Legend, lot 87	18K yellow gold, case 885,460, Cal. 1560, 34 mm, Beyer-signed
circa 1963 estimate	Antiquorum Geneva, lot 518	steel, Cal. 1570 as catalogued, 34 mm, riveted Oyster bracelet
watch dated 1966; catalogue 2016	Christie’s, case 1,280,618	steel, Cal. 1570 as catalogued, silver dial, 35 mm, guarantee and rate certificate
circa 1966 estimate; sale 2018	Christie’s, lot 115	14K gold catalogued as ref. 1500, Cal. 1570, 35 mm, JB Champion bracelet; inside caseback stamped 1503
circa 1967 estimate; sale 25 April 2021	Antiquorum Hong Kong, lot 234	steel, Cotton Bowl dial, Cal. 1570 as catalogued, 7205 bracelet
watch circa 1969; sale 14 December 2021	Sotheby’s, lot 1	steel, white dial, Cal. 1560 as catalogued, 34 mm
original sale May 1969; auction sale 9 November 2024	Antiquorum Geneva, lot 294	steel, grey dial, Cal. 1570, 35 mm, 7205/57 bracelet and warranty
circa 1973 estimate; sale 7 December 2011	Antiquorum New York, lot 349	14K gold catalogued as refs. 1500/1503, Cal. 1570, 34 mm
circa 1980 estimate; sale 2021	Phillips HSNY, lot 4	18K yellow gold, Cal. 1570, 35 mm
circa 1978 estimate; sale 27 November 2023	Phillips Hong Kong, lot 909	steel, Cal. 1570, 34 mm, 78350/557 bracelet, box and 1980 guarantee

Gallery

Phillips Hong Kong, lot 909, steel ref. 1500
Phillips Hong Kong, lot 909, case profile
Phillips Hong Kong, lot 909, caseback and bracelet
Antiquorum, lot 234, Cotton Bowl dial
Christie’s, UAE crest dial