Rolex Oyster Perpetual 5026

Steel Oyster Perpetual ref. 5026 with subsidiary seconds — Sterling Vault Auctioneers, lot 35.

Auction catalogues document ref. 5026 as a 36 mm steel automatic Oyster Perpetual; the examples reviewed usually have subsidiary seconds. Individual watches carry estimates from about 1946 to 1958, but the reference's production limits remain undated. Christie’s describes a white enamel dial; other catalogues show silvered or cream dials. These records document several examples, not a complete dial sequence.

Core facts

Detail	Documented record
Reference	5026
Model	Steel automatic Oyster Perpetual; “Ovettone” and “Big Bubble” are later collector or catalogue terms
Example dates	Circa 1946 (Christie’s); circa 1950 (Antiquorum and Sterling Vault); circa 1958 (Aste Bolaffi). These are dates assigned to individual lots.
Case size	36 mm in the catalogues reviewed
Case material	Stainless steel in the examples reviewed
Seconds layout	Subsidiary seconds at six in the photographed and described examples
Movement	Aste Bolaffi identifies Cal. 720, 18 jewels, in case 443371. No movement photograph confirms that number.
Dial records	White enamel, silvered, and cream descriptions; no complete dial sequence is established

Where it sits in the line

Ref. 5026 is part of the large-case automatic Oyster Perpetual group. Christie's comparison with ref. 5028 gives the usual seconds layout as subsidiary seconds for 5026 and centre seconds for 5028. Collectors use “Ovettone” and “Big Bubble” for the group; Rolex did not use them as family names. The comparison describes typical examples, not every watch. Christie's, Important Watches New York, 12 June 2026

Production outline

Christie's dates its example to about 1946; Antiquorum dates case 443409 to about 1950; Aste Bolaffi dates case 443371 to about 1958. Sterling Vault also gives about 1950 for its example. These catalogue estimates place individual watches across that period; Rolex's production dates for the reference remain unsettled. Christie's, lot 123; Antiquorum, lot 239; Aste Bolaffi, lot 4; Sterling Vault, lot 35

Movement notes

Aste Bolaffi names an automatic Cal. 720 with 18 jewels in case 443371. The catalogue does not show a readable caliber marking, so keep this as its description of one watch. Other exact-reference records reviewed do not name a caliber. Aste Bolaffi, lot 4

An early Relojes Especiales discussion also connects 5026 with Cal. 720 or A.295, but it gives no movement photograph or cited specimen. Treat that as a collector lead. Manual Kew A reports that use the name “720” describe a different source-specific movement context; keep those reports separate from the automatic auction attribution. Relojes Especiales forum discussion; Movement index

Dial map

The catalogued examples include a white enamel dial (Christie’s), a silvered dial with subsidiary seconds (Aste Bolaffi), and a cream dial with Arabic numerals and subsidiary seconds (Sterling Vault). Aste Boetto describes another silvered dial with gold-tone hands and indexes. Each description belongs to a separate watch; the catalogues do not order these layouts or verify that every dial is original to its case. Christie's, lot 123; Aste Bolaffi, lot 4; Sterling Vault, lot 35; Aste Boetto, lot 2827

The seconds hand sits in a register at six on the Antiquorum photograph and the other catalogue images. Antiquorum’s text calls its lot centre-seconds, a description at odds with the photograph. Christie's 2026 catalogue also gives subsidiary seconds as the usual 5026 layout. The records located show no confirmed centre-seconds 5026. Antiquorum, lot 239; Christie's, 2026 catalogue

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes

The exact-reference catalogues reviewed describe 36 mm stainless-steel cases. Christie's calls the crown on its circa-1946 example original. Bezel and crystal details are sparse and inconsistent across the catalogues; the available evidence does not establish a reference-wide specification. Christie's, lot 123

Angled front and crown-side view, Sterling Vault lot 35.
Exterior caseback, Sterling Vault lot 35. The inner reference stamp is not visible here.

Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes

The lots show different fitted bracelets. Christie's says its Jubilee bracelet is later than the watch and records end links stamped 55 and a bracelet stamp 3, 65. Aste Bolaffi lists a 7205 bracelet with 57 end links and a clasp code 2.69; that later clasp dates the bracelet component, not the watch head. Sterling Vault calls its bracelet unbranded. Aste Boetto describes a rice-grain bracelet as original to its lot, a claim not independently verified here. These records do not establish standard delivery fitment. No reference-specific box or papers are documented in the sources reviewed. Christie's, lot 123; Aste Bolaffi, lot 4; Sterling Vault, lot 35; Aste Boetto, lot 2827

Clasp and bracelet on the watch catalogued by Sterling Vault, lot 35.

Special branches

Two isolated records differ from the examples described above. Anderson & Garland catalogued one watch with 5028 struck through and 5026 added on the caseback. That corrected marking does not establish a standard dual-reference case. An archived dealer listing calls a 30 mm manual SpeedKing “5026,” though its photograph shows neither the claimed caseback stamp nor the movement. Neither record establishes a recurring 5026 variant. Rolex ref. 5026/5028, lot 16; EveryWatch archived listing

Historical market and auction record

Sale record	Example
Christie's, lot 123	Steel, 36 mm, automatic, white enamel dial; circa 1946. Condition report says the inside caseback is stamped 5026 and the Jubilee bracelet is later.
Antiquorum Hong Kong, 2016, lot 239	Case 443409, steel, 36 mm, circa 1950. The image shows subsidiary seconds despite the catalogue's centre-seconds wording.
Sterling Vault, 2024, lot 35	Steel, 36 mm, automatic, subsidiary seconds; circa 1950. Four views show the dial, case, caseback exterior, and clasp.
Aste Bolaffi, lot 4	Case 443371, steel, 36 mm, circa 1958; catalogue identifies automatic Cal. 720/18 jewels.
Aste Boetto, lot 2827	Steel, 36 mm, automatic, silvered dial and rice-grain bracelet; the auctioneer describes the bracelet as original.

Gallery

Whole watch, Sterling Vault Auctioneers, lot 35.
Angled front and crown-side view, same watch.
Exterior caseback, same watch.
Clasp and bracelet, same watch.