ROLEX Oyster Perpetual Bubble Back "Criss-Cross Dial" 1940s

A Rolex Oyster Perpetual Ref. 2764 from the early 1940s, one of the first generation of Rolex automatics. They are known as Bubble Backs for the domed case back that makes room for the winding rotor. The main draw of this example is the criss-cross dial, a two-tone layout found on early Bubble Backs and rarely seen today. Inside is a self-winding 9¾-ligne, 17-jewel movement fitted with Rolex's Super Balance, and it winds from the motion of the wrist. It sits on a steel beads-of-rice bracelet that keeps the watch light enough for everyday wear.

The case is stainless steel with a coin-edge screw-down back, and it shows the marks of more than eighty years of use. It measures 31.3mm across excluding the crown and 39mm from lug to lug, with a 17mm lug width. The domed back adds some height, but the compact width keeps it neat on the wrist and easy to wear under a cuff.

Two fine diagonal lines cross at the centre of the dial and divide it into four sectors. Age has turned the surface a mottled cream and softened both the two-tone contrast and the printing, while the large black Arabic numerals and the small seconds at six keep it easy to read. The patina is uneven and plainly old, and it gives the dial a depth that a clean surface would not have.