Rolex Prince ref. 1855

A checked version of this page, approved on 21 October 2026, was based on this revision.

Prince → 1855

Rectangular Rolex Prince reference 1855, photographed for Bonhams sale 23512 lot 21 — Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21 (2016).

Ref. 1855 is a rectangular Rolex Prince that auction catalogues call “Prince Brancard.” Examples dated from about 1930 to about 1940 have steel and pink-gold or 9-carat yellow-gold cases. Those sale dates do not establish the production span.

Core facts

Detail	Documented record
Family	Prince; catalogued as Prince Brancard by Christie's and Bonhams
Reference	1855, named by multiple auction houses; visible on the Arthur Johnson example's case
Production dates	Individual examples catalogued circa 1930, in the 1930s, and circa 1940; endpoints unknown
Case materials	Stainless steel and pink gold; 9-carat yellow gold
Case shape	Rectangular; flared or curved sides on described examples
Movement	Manual-wind, shaped Prince movement; no numbered caliber established
Dial layout	Upper time display and subsidiary seconds at six in pictured and catalogued examples
Case dimensions	Published figures include 20 × 35 mm (Alexandre Landre), 22 × 35 mm (Bonhams), 23 × 41 mm (Antiquorum), 36 × 23 mm (Sotheby's), and 25 × 42 mm (Olde Timers); measuring conventions differ
Bracelet	Leather straps are documented; bracelet and end-link fitment are not established

Where it sits in the line

The 1855 belongs to the Prince family of rectangular watches with shaped manual-wind movements. Catalogues use “Brancard” for the 1855 and for other Prince references. The surviving 1855 examples have flared rectangular sides. Auction catalogues also use “Brancard” for other Prince references, so the case profile is the more useful identifier.

Production outline

Christie's dates two-tone case 14382 to about 1930. Bonhams also dates a two-tone watch to about 1930; its photograph shows case 14368, though the catalogue text masks the number as 143**. Piguet lists another case, 14413, in the 1930s. Sotheby's dates yellow-gold case 31705 to about 1940.

These are dates assigned by cataloguers to individual watches. These four case numbers and catalogue dates are too few to establish a serial-to-year sequence or the reference's production endpoints.

Movement notes

The examples use manually wound, shaped movements of the Prince type. Bonhams' photograph of case 14368 shows “510” and “17 Rubies” on the plate; its catalogue calls 510 a caliber. The movement guide treats bare plate numbers such as 510 as likely movement serials because the same movement family carries several numbers. Piguet also reports 17 jewels; Christie's lists 18 for case 14382. The Arthur Johnson photograph of a separate 1855 shows Extra Prima and six-position markings. Alexandre Landre's 2024 lot calls another movement “Rolex 318”; its small photographs do not show a legible marking. Exact caliber assignments remain unsettled.

Movement in case 14368; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21
Inside caseback of case 14368; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21

Dial map

Christie's describes a silvered dial with Arabic and baton numerals, pink-gilt detail, blued Alpha hands and subsidiary seconds. Bonhams describes case 14368 with a salmon-pink dial, black quarter numerals, sword hands and a seconds register. Piguet describes a sand-finished dial with pink accents and blued seconds hand. The Arthur Johnson photograph shows Arabic numerals, a subsidiary-seconds register, and the retailer signature “Murdock's, Cape Town.” It also carries “Fabsuisse” near six. The records show different dial treatments, but no source dates them as a production sequence.

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes

Christie's describes flared lugs, a stainless-steel case and a pink-gold bezel on case 14382. Bonhams describes case 14368 as brushed and polished steel and rose gold, with flared sides. Its inside back shows “25 Records Universelles,” a crowned SAR stamp, and a parachute mark. David Boettcher identifies the parachute as a Robert Meylan trademark. Meylan’s Geneva case-making company was registered in 1928; the trademark was registered in 1934. That registration is not a date for this case. Boettcher says the SAR mark is undocumented; “Société Anonyme Rolex” is only a possible reading. Sotheby's records a 9-carat yellow-gold snap-back case, 36 × 23 mm, while Antiquorum's 2003 example measures 23 × 41 mm and is described as curved, two-body construction. The Arthur Johnson photographs show another stepped rectangular case and removable back. The dimensions use different measuring conventions and should stay tied to their individual watches.

Case profile and crown, case 14368; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21
Case number 14368 on the outer caseback; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21

Bracelets, clasps, and packaging

The auction records show leather straps. Alexandre Landre measures 18 mm between the lugs, but that does not establish a factory bracelet or end links. Antiquorum lists a fitted box with its watch; that is evidence for that sale only.

Special branches

Arthur Johnson's photographed example has the retailer name Murdock's and “Cape Town” on its dial. Watch Guru describes a yellow-gold 1855 with the same retailer name and says it was presented to a De Beers executive in 1940. The dealer also calls it one of three. The listing gives no case number or supporting document, and the available details do not show whether it is the Arthur Johnson watch. Treat the presentation story and scarcity count as dealer claims.

Side and underside of a separate ref. 1855 case with the reference and case number stamped beneath the case — The case stamp on Arthur Johnson's Murdock's-signed example.

Auction record

Sale	Case / movement	Record
Christie's, lot 4366792	14382 / not numbered in catalogue	Steel and pink gold, circa 1930; silvered dial; 18 jewels; 42 mm long
Bonhams, sale 23512, lot 21 (2016)	14368 in photograph / “510”	Steel and rose gold, circa 1930; salmon-pink dial; 17 jewels; 22 × 35 mm. The case number is visible in the lot photograph; the catalogue masks it as 143**.
Antiquorum, Geneva, 11 October 2003, lot 432	Number not transcribed	Pink gold and stainless steel, circa 1930s; 18 jewels; 23 × 41 mm; fitted box listed
Piguet, lot 1592 (2017)	14413 / 77395	Steel and rose gold, 1930s; 17 jewels; 21 mm wide
Sotheby's, London, lot 128 (2017)	31705 / not stated	9-carat yellow gold, circa 1940; silvered refinished dial; 18 jewels; 36 × 23 mm
Arthur Johnson, lot 1081 (2023)	032693 in title; identifier type not specified	Circa 1930s; 22 mm case; Murdock's, Cape Town dial; six photographs include the case, dial and movement
Alexandre Landre, lot 30 (2024)	Not stated	Steel with two rose-gold bands; 20 × 35 mm; 18 mm lug spacing; catalogue calls movement Rolex 318
EveryWatch aggregated listing	31707 (as reported)	Circa 1934; 9-carat gold, tagged rose gold; source auction not linked, so sale and material remain unverified
Olde Timers, archive item 3722	Numbered caseback; number not transcribed	Dealer archive describes steel and rose gold, 25 × 42 mm, SAR mark and an Extra Prima movement; possible overlap with other two-tone records is unresolved

Gallery

Dial and case, case 14368; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21
Case profile and crown; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21
Case number 14368; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21
Inside caseback; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21
Movement; Bonhams sale 23512, lot 21
Reference 1855 and separate number 032693 beneath the case; Arthur Johnson, lot 1081

Sources