Signed Rolex, Quartz, Ref. 5100, case no. 025, circa 1971

The present watch is in excellent overall condition, a beautiful and rare vintage piece seldom found at auction. Furthermore it is number 025 and therefore extremely early in the series. The Quartz Rolex, reference 5100, was introduced in 1970 using the famous Beta 21 quartz movement which was accurate to 5 seconds per month. It was immediately so successful that the initial pilot series production was completely sold out prior to delivery. Reference 5100 was the first Rolex to have a sapphire crystal and the quick date change mechanism. It was also revolutionary for the new case design, much more angular in its shape than the Oyster case. Designed to be made in very limited quantities only, each Rolex Quartz is engraved with the limited edition number, in this instance No. 025 which is very early in the series.