Rolex Day Date - Still a classic today

In 1956, Rolex presented its first Day Date, another model that would quickly become one of Rolex's many classics: To this day, they and several other watches from the 1950s characterise the collection of the Geneva Manufactory. The Rolex Day Date was a world first: the first wristwatch to display the full day of the week in addition to the date. This lettering was depicted in a separate window below the twelve, which was modeled after the rounding of the clock. This striking feature of being able to display both the current date and the appropriate day of the week finally gave the luxury watch its name: Day date.

A watch with symbolic character

For better readability, a section of sapphire glass with two and a half times magnification was additionally inserted above the date window. This innovation was playfully called the "Cyclops Loupe". Over time, it was gradually transferred to all other Rolex watch models equipped with date windows. In the meantime, this helpful feature has become a typical feature of the Rolex watch brand. Rolex's Day Date model became famous not only for its innovative ¨Zyklopenlupe¨, but also for famous and influential personalities such as Pope John Paul II or Wall Street legend Warren Buffet, who wore this innovative watch on their wrists. Some American presidents also opted for the elegant luxury watch with day display, including President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy. These prominent figures quickly gave Rolex Day Date nicknames such as "President's Watch" or "Rolex President". However, these could also have resulted from the bracelet with the special round cut, which is only available for the Rolex Dayjust and the Rolex Day Date. This was also introduced in 1956 under the name "President" (e.g. reference 118205).

A date display as an unmistakable feature

Following the success of the first Rolex Day Date, the Swiss company decided in 2008 to launch a new luxury watch under the name Day Date. The Rolex Day Date II was also launched with the new 3156 movement and enlarged to 41 millimetres in diameter. After the great success of the first Rolex Day Date, the famous date display is now available in more than 26 different languages and remains the highlight of the Day Date.