Rolex Daytona Lemon 6263 and 6264

 

A ZEST FOR ROLEX

By DANNY CRIVELLO

Back in August I wrote about the lesser-talked-about Paul Newman variant, the Lemon. It's less talked about for the simple reason there aren't that many emerging in public or on the market. One had come up for sale, a 6264, of which only 11 were known to exist in the world. And I wrote about it because it was the first time this century such a watch had come up for sale in London. 

To be clear, the "Lemon" Paul Newman refers to the rich lemon color of the dial color, which is very different from the usual cream/champagne color. 

Lemon 6264 offered by Phillips at the Geneva Auction XVI.

Also, what makes it a Lemon is the white printing on the sub-registers (other yellow-gold pump-pushers Paul Newman have champagne/gilt numbers and indices). The Lemon's white numbers and indices create this cool contrast with the dark background and a striking visual effect.

Lemon 6263 at Christie's Geneva Rare Watches auction.

This week for the first time ever two "Lemons" are being auctioned off two days in a row, a 6264 (presented by Phillips) and a 6263 (Christie's). They both include the Rolex bracelet unlike the one that had been the subject of my article in August.

Christie's is offering the Lemon 6263 (above); it is recognizable with its screw-down pushers on a Lemon dial, which is ultra-rare. The watch comes from "an important European collector," according to Christie's. Price estimates range from an eye-popping $3 to $5 million. 

"When it comes to Rolex collecting for vintage watches it's all about the tiny differences which in the end make a huge difference," said Rémi Guillemin, Head of Watches at Christie’s Geneva. "It’s now confirmed that three examples of this stunning variation exist and is to my eyes the best-preserved of only three known to exist.”

While Phillips is offering the 6264 Lemon (below) which has pump pushers. The watch is less valuable than the 6263 but still reaches close to $1 million.