Rolex Sea-Dweller

The Sea-Dweller is the stuff of legend...and proof that Rolex is King of the Seas. A big brother to the iconic Submariner, the Sea Dweller is bigger, thicker, meaner, and deeper in every way. It was also the first model to feature a Helium Escape Valve fitted to a commercially-available Rolex. The Reference 1665 is the debut Reference of the family, with the example here possessing the second dial variant within the Reference. It features 4-lines of text in white, rather than its predecessor, the highly coveted 'Double Red Sea-Dweller' or 'DSRD', which featured 5 lines of text, two of which were red. This particular example dates to circa 1978 and features the beloved 39mm stainless steel Oyster case with helium escape valve at 9:00, a signed crown, a domed acrylic crystal and a bidirectional rotating dive time bezel with a crisp black insert, and an excellent matte black Tritium dial with a matching handset. It comes fitted to a black Tropic® rubber strap with a steel pin buckle. Sea-Dwellers, particularly in their original 39mm case size, offer a sneaky alternative to the more common Submariners out there. Functional, gorgeous, and endlessly cool. This one is no exception.