The Rolex Daytona, named after the Daytona International Speedway in Florida, is quickly becoming one of the most popular and sought after watches in history. Prices are going up and are showing no signs of slowing down.
It's the perfect mix of a watch which is mechanically interesting, attractive, from a top-tier brand, and embedded in popular culture (thanks to Paul Newman and his record-setting Daytona).
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It's understated, elegant, and its design is truely iconic.
Phillips, a historic auction house founded in London in 1796, has organised a Rolex Daytona-only auction, with some watches expected to go for well over £1 million (although, none quite reaching the heights of Newman's).
The auction is called the 'Daytona Ultimatum', and features 32 pieces in total. We've collected a few images of the watches, because, even though we don't have the money to purchase one, we can still dream, right?
When it comes to watch collecting rarity is king, and it doesn't get much rarer than the "The Unicorn", which is thought to the only white gold reference 6265 Daytona ever produced.
The watch is expected to make in excess of CHF 3 Million at the auction.
Another favourite of T3's is the Ref. 6241 "John Player Special" (lead image), which is a beautiful yellow gold chronograph, with a black ‘Paul Newman’ dial displaying contrasting gold registers.
It's named after the 1972 Lotus Formula One team, whose livery featured the same colours, and research indicates that less than 300 examples were made.
If you're in the market for a highly collectable watch, the auction is on the 12th May at 4pm CET.
Even if you can't afford any of the pieces up for auction, it's worth checking out the Phillips website just for the stunning images.
Here are a few of our favourites:
Image credits: Philips
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