Day-Date

The Day-Date was presented in 1956 at the Basel watch fair with reference 6511, available exclusively in 18-carat gold or platinum: a choice of materials the brand has kept throughout the line's entire history, with the sole exception of six steel examples of reference 6611, made as a prize for students of the Geneva watchmaking school. What makes the Day-Date an absolute novelty in the watch world is the presence of two windows on the dial, one for the date and one for the day of the week spelled out in full: the first automatic wristwatch to offer this combination of information.

At launch Rolex also introduced the semi-circular link bracelet now known as the "President" bracelet: the name, documented as early as 1957, spread further in popular culture after US President Lyndon B. Johnson was photographed wearing a gold Day-Date in 1965, leading Rolex to promote the model as "the watch of presidents." Over the decades several American heads of state have indeed worn it, including Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and, more recently, Donald Trump; President John F. Kennedy received one as a gift in 1962, although according to various sources he never wore it in public.

After the initial reference, the 1803 accompanied the line for almost twenty years, from 1959 to 1977, consolidating its image as an institutional watch exclusive in its materials. The most recent evolution includes the Day-Date II between 2008 and 2015, with an enlarged case, and the current Day-Date 40, which adopts Rolex's in-house Calibre 3255 and a 40 mm diameter, while keeping the line's two distinctive traits intact since its origins: exclusive precious materials and the dual day-and-date display.