The First Rolex Mount Everest Ad: It All Began With This Rolex Advertorial

The First Rolex Mount Everest Ad

It All Began With This Rolex Advertorial

[Published 3 Days After Mount Everest Was Conquered]

One of the things we have been exploring for a long time on Jake's Rolex World is the genesis of the Rolex Explorer. To the best of my knowledge, this is the very first Rolex advertorial to celebrate the fact that Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay were wearing Rolex Oyster Perpetual watches when they summited Everest. It was published just 3 days after Tenzing Norgay & Sir Edmund Hillary conquered Everest!!!

Soon after this amazing historical achievement, Rolex introduced the Rolex Explorer model that was based on this model of Oyster Perpetual. Of course they changed the dial to black, although Rolex also offered early Rolex Explorer models with white dials as well. To learn much more about Rolex conquest of Everest you can check out my article named Rolex Conquers Mount Everest.

1957 Rolex Mount Everest Ad

Rolex Super-Coolness: Tenzing Norgay

...Rolex Super-Coolness...

Tenzing Norgay


Mountain Climbing Legend

Conquerer of Mount Everest

Back in 2009 I wrote an 8 part series named, "The Complete History of Rolex Conquering Mount Everest, and in that series I documented how both Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary might have worn Rolex watches when they were the first humans to successfully climb to the top of Mount Everest in 1953. The photo below of Tenzing Norgay was taken on October 31, 1957 wearing a Rolex on an Oyster Bracelet.

The super iconic photo below taken by the Royal Geographic Society shows Tenzing Norgay with Sir Edmund Hillary on their way establishing Camp 9 as they head to the summit of Mount Everest.

In the photo below taken in 1953 by the Royal Geographical Society we see Tenzing Norgay with Sir Edmund Hillary and they both might be wearing Rolex watches. Tenzing received a Rolex as a gift from Swiss climber, Raymond Lambert after he and Lambert almost reached the summit of Everest the year before on a Swiss Everest Expedition in 1952. 

The photo above shows Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary on May 25th, 1953 during the Mount Everest Expedition as the duo prepares their oxygen systems just before they set off from Camp 9 for the summit of Everest. If you look closely you will notice Tenzing has their Summit flags wrapped around his ice axe which he is holding like a cane.

This next photo of Tenzing Norgay was taken by Sir Edmund Hillary on the summit of Mount Everest. Tenzing offered to take a photo of Hillary on the summit but Hillary refused the offer.

The Rolex advertorial seen below was published 3 days after Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary conquered Everest.

1957 Rolex Mount Everest Ad

This next two photos below show Tenzing Norgay at  Rolex International Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland taken on July 5, 1953 and he is wearing a Rolex on his wrist. 

The photos above and below were recently discovered by our super-talented researcher, Alan who is located in Hong Kong. The next photo shows Tenzing Norgay examining a Rolex Datejust on a Jubilee Bracelet in Rolex Founder, Hans Wilsdorf's private office at Rolex Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.

It is believed Hans Wilsdorf traded Tenzing Norgay a Rolex in exchange another Rolex which is now in the private Museum collection. 

The photo above and below appear courtesy of Rolex Passion Report who first discovered this historical yellow gold Rolex Datejust that apparently was a gift from Rolex to Tenzing as a memento for the 1952 Swiss Expedition to Everest.

Vintage Rolex Explorer Ad Conquering Mount Everest

Vintage Rolex Explorer Ad

Conquering Mount Everest

The Complete History Of Rolex Conquering Mount Everest [Part 1 of 8]

62nd Anniversary Celebration

I wrote this Rolex history story 6 years ago, and am republishing it on this 62nd anniversary of this amazing human achievement. 

The Complete History

Rolex Conquers Mount Everest

[Part 1 0f 8]

Tenzing Norgay & Sir Edmund Hillary Conquer Mount Everest

We must not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we began and to know the place for the first time. – T. S. Elliot

Preface

I must admit when I set out to write this story, I had no idea how complicated and time consuming it would be. There was so much fascinating detail to capture in this story, and in the months and years to come I am certain I will update and add to the story many times.

As a historian and writer, I wanted to do more than give you a list of dated bullet points with photos. I wanted to actually take you to Nepal and take you up Mount Everest, which I feel I have achieved. I also wanted to let you stand in Tenzing Norgay's shoes and Sir Edmund Hillary's shoes to see things from their unique perspective. Enjoy the trip!!!

On Top of The World

Many of us have seen the classic National Geographic photo below of Sir Edmund Hillary and his Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay near the top of Everest.

There are many unanswered questions surrounding their epic conquest of Everest, like whether they were wearing Rolex watches under their jackets in this photo. In this article I will do my best to shed as much light as I can on this amazing story of human ingenuity, achievment and perseverance, as well as two men reaching the highest highs and the lowest lows.

It Was A Very Good Year

Let's go back in time to 1953 and take a look around. The world was starting to bounce back from World War II and Queen Elizabeth II was crowned Queen of England at Buckingham Palace as seen in the Life photo below from the coronation.

Ironically, news of the successful conquering of Everest by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay reached Britain on the very day of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation.

1953 was a glorious year of optimism where anything seemed possible. As the world embarked upon the second half of the twentieth century, a whole new modern world began to emerge. The world entered into a truly modern epoch where everything began to change quickly, and humanity began to freely dream again. The only limitation was imagination.

In 1953 Dwight Eisenhower was the President of The United States and of course he was wearing his beloved yellow gold Rolex that had been given to him as a gift from Rene-Paul Jeanneret who was the director of Rolex. This Rolex was no ordinary Rolex, it was the 150,000th Officially Certified Swiss Chronometer that Rolex made.

1953 was a very interesting and promising year. Elvis Presley was still in high school and the Space age had arrived–and with it, America's love for the automobile culminated in the 1953 Corvette which had beautiful lines like nothing that had ever come before it.

Speaking of beautiful lines, 1953 was the year that Hugh Hefner launched Playboy magazine, which, in its debut issue, featured this stunningly gorgeous photo of the young Marilyn Monroe–The sexual revolution was also underway.

Table Of Contents

• Chapter 1: It Was A Very Good Year

• Next >>> Chapter 2: The Roof Of The World

• Chapter 3: Onward And Upward

• Chapter 4: Man Versus Mountain

• Chapter 5: Worldwide Celebration

• Chapter 6: The Rolex Explorer

• Chapter 7: The Rolex Watches

• Chapter 8: Return To Everest

Sir Edmund Hillary & Tenzing Norgay On Top Of The World

...Rolex Super-Coolness...

Sir Edmund Hillary & Tenzing Norgay

On Top Of The World

Sir Edmund Hillary is pictured below wearing the navy blue parka and his quote as seen below is profoundly true. Tenzing Norgay is pictured below wearing his gold parka. Tenzing was a supreme climber, and he also said something really profound that has resonated with me for may years. Tenzing Norgay said:

 "It is the ultimate wisdom of the mountains that a man is never more of a man, than when he is reaching for something just out of his grasp." –Tenzing Norgay

Below is a copy of the very first Rolex Mount Everest Ad which was published 3 days after Mount Everest was conquered. You can learn much more about Rolex conquering Mount Everest in 1953 by exploring my article named "Rolex Conquers Mount Everest–The Complete History."

Sir Edmund Hillary's Rolex Discovered!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sir Edmund Hillary's Everest Expedition Rolex Discovered!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Missing Piece Of The Puzzle Has Been Found

This is one of the most exciting moments of my life with Jake's Rolex Watch Blog!!!!!!!!!!

I wrote a super detailed article about Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay's conquest of Mount Everest which you can read by clicking here. The challenge is that I was able to put together all the pieces of the puzzle except one? and that was whether Sir Edmund Hillary was wearing a Rolex on his wrist when he conquered Everest and if he did where was the actual watch today?

After many months and many international emails and phone calls I can report with confidence that Sir Edmunds Hillary's Rolex has been found and properly documented. The watch is in possession of the Beyer Clock and Watch Museum in Zürich, Switzerland. I have been working with folks at the Beyer Clock And Watch Museum on this story and they just confirmed with me that Rolex in Geneva confirmed the watch indeed belonged to Sir Edmund Hillary and was given to the Hunt Expedition.

This first photo is of the the actual watch Sir Edmund Hillary wore when he conquered Everest. 

The watch is an Officially Certified Chronometer Rolex Oyster Perpetual with a white dial and it is pictured below on top of a Rolex magazine ad which I believe is from between 1953 and late 1958. The irony, of course is Edmund Hillary's Rolex watch was NOT a (as widely believed and reported) a Rolex Explorer model, but a Rolex Oyster Perpetual COSC.

This next Rolex magazine advertisement is from 1953 and it appears to show the exact Rolex Oyster Perpetual that Sir Edmund Hillary wore. It does not show a Rolex Explorer, but the actual model as seen above but on an early Rolex Oyster bracelet. To the best of my recollection this model is very similar to the one Chuck Yeager wore when he broke the speed of sound barrier in 1947.

Also, notice that next to the photo of the watch in the ad below it says:

"The ROLEX OYSTER PERPETUAL that accompanied the victorious British Everest Expedition. Waterproof, self-winding, and a miracle of accuracy, this watch is the 'highest achievement' of the watchmaking industry."

It is interesting to note the use of language in the ad below as well–where Rolex uses the term "Highest Achievement." This is interesting to me because in my mind that is what Rolex has always been about. I think there is something about wearing a Rolex on your wrist that makes people strive higher to achieve. Perhaps, I and Rolex are romanticizing things, but it makes perfect sense to me.

Please Click Image To Make Larger

The ad has a letter from Sir Edmund Hillary to Rolex written upon his return from the 1952 British Himalayan Expedition and it reads:

"I received the watch (Rolex) on March 29th an Jaynagar on the Nepalese border, and throughout the whole of the British Cho Oyu Expedition, until we finally reached India again some 14 weeks later, I wore the watch (Rolex) continuously, night and day, and on no occasion did it stop or require winding. In the course of the expedition it experienced considerable extremes of temperature, from the great heat of India to the cold temperature at over 22,000 feet, and seemed unaffected by the knocks it received on rock climbs or the continual jarring on long spells of stop cutting in ice."

"To me an accurate watch is a novelty. I am one of those unfortunate people whose watches, for some some strange reason, always seem to go slow. No adjustment seems to counteract. However this Rolex has been different a different matter altogether. Its accuracy is all one could desire and it has run continuously without winding ever since I put it on some nine months ago...I count your watch amongst my most treasured possessions."

These next two photos are of Sir Edmund Hillary's actual Rolex Watch he was wearing when he conquered Mount Everest. This first photo which gets us up close was taken by Andrew and it shows all the detail on the dial. When I was doing research for the original story, I watched a tremendous amount of film footage and I kept looking for a Rolex Explorer on an Oyster band with a black dial, but I saw nothing that even resembled one. Instead, I kept seeing members of the Everest expedition including Hillary wearing watches on leather straps with white dial and this confused me terribly.

Welcome Home Baby!!!

The obvious reason I did not see any Rolex Explorer models is because the members of the Hunt expedition were not wearing them. In the photo below of Sir Edmund Hillary's watch we see that it has an extra long leather strap which enabled it to be worn over clothing or gloves.

Update on July 4, 2021: When I first saw the image below I thought it was Sir Edmund Hillary on the far right wearing two watches but it turns out it was Charles Wylie...

This next photo of Hillary (pictured on the left) shows him in the foothills with just one watch on a black leather strap.

Same with this next photo. One watch on his left wrist.