Rolex 5443/9 Cellini Prince

Prince → 5443/9

Watch LIFE NEWS dates Rolex's modern Cellini Prince line to 2005. The 5443/9 is its white-gold version, with a black-and-silver “Rayon Flammé de la Gloire” dial and manual-wind Cal. 7040-4. Exact-reference records include papers dated 2006 and 2007, Rolex listings from 2008 to 2015, and a 2016 auction listing.

Core facts

Reference	Family	Documented period	Case	Movement	Dial
5443/9	Cellini Rolex Prince	MyWatchSite dates it to 2005; exact-reference records run through 2016	Rectangular, 18 ct white gold	Manual-wind Cal. 7040-4; 21 jewels; chronometer-certified	Black and silver “Rayon Flammé de la Gloire” guilloché; small seconds at six

Where it sits in the line

Rolex revived the Prince name in a four-reference Cellini line. The 5440/8 is yellow gold, the 5442/5 is Everose, and the 5441/9 and 5443/9 are white gold. The 5443/9 pairs a double Rayon Flammé dial with a matching movement finish. It is a modern Cellini model, distinct from the rectangular Prince watches made before it.

Production outline

MyWatchSite dates ref. 5443/9 to 2005, the year Watch LIFE NEWS gives for the modern line. Christie's catalogues a white-gold ref. 5443, without the /9 suffix, as manufactured that year. For exact 5443/9 examples, Watch Centre records papers dated October 2006 and Christie's records a guarantee dated 2007 for case D758351. Rolex's 2008 and 2015 price lists and its archived 2014 product page list the reference; Dorotheum catalogues an example in 2016.

Movement notes

Rolex assigns the -0002 configuration a manually wound Cal. 7040-4, with chronometer certification, Paraflex shock absorbers and about 72 hours of power reserve. The 2015 price list gives 21 jewels. Rolex describes a double Rayon Flammé de la Gloire finish on the movement bridges, matching the dial pattern. The movement guide lists Cal. 7040-4 for the 5443/9.

Christie's catalogue for case D780626 lists ref. 5443, without the /9 suffix, and Cal. 7040-1. Rolex's model page assigns Cal. 7040-4 to the 5443/9-0002. Phillips and Dorotheum list 7040-4 for exact 5443/9 examples; Crott lists case D772943 as ref. 5443 and gives the same caliber. Christie's gives no explanation for its different caliber label, so that discrepancy stays attached to D780626.

Cal. 7040-4 visible through the display back of a Rolex Cellini Prince 5443/9 — Movement view, dealer stock 71323.

Dial map

Rolex describes the -0002 dial as black and silver with double “Rayon Flammé de la Gloire” guilloché. Hours and minutes share the upper register; the lower register carries small seconds. The April 2008 Watch Your Time product page describes the 5443/9 with mixed counters, Arabic numerals, hour markers and red minute tracks. Christie's 2007 entry for case D758351 calls its dial “silvered” and gives no pattern detail, so that wording does not establish a separate dial variant.

Black and silver double Rayon Flammé dial on Rolex Cellini Prince 5443/9 — Dial detail, dealer stock 71323.

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes

Rolex describes a rectangular 18 ct white-gold case, sapphire crystal, transparent back and 50-metre water resistance. Its archived page gives a nominal size of 45 × 29 mm. Watch.de lists 47 × 28.3 × 9.7 mm; Phillips and Christie's give 47 mm in length. Tim Mosso's review measures one 5443/9 at 28 mm across and 46.8 mm lug-to-lug, with 9.6 mm thickness; an R-L-X owner gives 28 × 47 mm. Crott records 28 × 38 mm for case D772943, while Watch LIFE NEWS gives 35.1 × 28 mm and 10 mm thickness. The listings leave their measuring points unspecified; Crott's stated length is much shorter than the other reports. Watch.de calls its crown screw-down; Crott describes case D772943 as non-screw-down. Rolex's archived page leaves crown construction unspecified, so the catalogue descriptions conflict.

Strap, clasp, and packaging notes

Rolex specifies an alligator strap and white-gold butterfly clasp. Crott records clasp ref. 16/514 with an OP6 mark dated June 2006 on case D772943; Phillips lists a 16/514 clasp on case D767379. The June 2006 mark dates the clasp, while the auction catalogue separately dates the watch circa 2006.

Phillips lists a box, papers, product literature, instruction manual, wallet and outer packaging with its 2008 example. Christie's records a guarantee dated 2007 for case D758351. Those are the accessories recorded for the two auction examples.

Rear view of the display back, strap and white-gold clasp on a Rolex Cellini Prince 5443/9 — Rear view, dealer stock 71323.

Auction record

Record	Example	What the catalogue reports
Christie's, case D780626	Ref. 5443; stated manufacture year 2005	White gold, black-and-silver dial, Cal. 7040-1 and 28 × 47 mm. The catalogue omits “/9”; Rolex assigns Cal. 7040-4 to 5443/9-0002.
Crott / Uhren-Muser, 112th auction	Case D772943; circa 2006	Cal. 7040-4, black-and-silver dial, clasp ref. 16/514 with OP6 (6/2006) mark; 28 × 38 mm.
Christie's, case D758351	Circa 2007	Silvered dial, 28 × 47 mm, white-gold deployant clasp; guarantee dated 2007. The sold watch was fitted with a Christie's-branded strap.
Phillips, The Hong Kong Watch Auction: ONE	Case D767379; movement G05791	Ref. 5443/9, Cal. 7040-4, 21 jewels, 47 mm length; Rolex chronometer attestation dated 24 April 2008. The catalogue reports an inside caseback stamped “5419”; the mark remains unexplained.
Dorotheum, 22 January 2016	Ref. 5443/9	White gold, Cal. 7040-4, black Rayon Flammé dial; 28 × 47 mm.

Watch Centre separately lists a 5443/9 with punched papers dated October 2006. Dealer and auction records describe individual watches; their dates, fittings and measurements should not be treated as a factory-wide specification.

Gallery

Front view of dealer stock 71323, identified as ref. 5443/9.
Black and silver double Rayon Flammé de la Gloire dial, stock 71323.
Movement close-up; the 7040-4 engraving is visible, stock 71323.
Rear view of the display back, strap and white-gold clasp, stock 71323.

Sources