Grace Kelly Rolex Lady Date in Yellow Gold

...Newly Discovered Photos...

Prince Rainier

1923-2005

Rocking a Rolex Submariner

Reference 6536 

Nick Gould just sent in these super cool photos of Prince Rainier III, of Mónaco rocking his Rolex Submariner [Reference 6536] back in 1960. The first image was originally discovered by @rafmeyerschmidt who originally shared it with Nick Gould. Prince Rainier's son, Albert II, who is the current Prince of Mónaco is sitting on his lap with his sister, Princess Stephanie looking on.

These newly discovered photos are significant as we have known for a long time Prince Rainier wore different Rolex watches as you can see later in this article, but the early Rolex Submariner on his wrist is beyond cool...The best scholarship suggests it's a Reference 6536 based upon the Mercedes hour hand...

Back in December of 2021 Rolex launched a campaign that featured a video clip of Princess Grace Kelly from Rear Window so I thought it would be fun to take a look at her amazing lifetime achievements:

...Rolex Super Beauty...

Grace Kelly

1929-1982

Timeless Elegant Beauty

26MM Yellow Gold Rolex Lady Date

Beautiful, Iconic, Timeless, Talented, Feminine, Smart, Charismatic, Elegant, Stunning, Simple, Gorgeous. These are just some of the adjectives that come to mind when I think about Grace Kelly...

Who is the most beautiful and elegant woman that ever lived? Some might say, Sophia Loren, while others might say Princess Grace is arguably the most beautiful and elegant woman that ever lived. One thing both beauties shared is their taste in the finer things in life, including both wearing Yellow Gold 26MM Rolex Lady Date watches.

In the photo below, we see Princess Grace of Monaco wearing her yellow gold Rolex Lady Date in 1972. 

The photo above and below were taken at a swimming competition in Palm Beach, Monte Carlo in 1972. Princess Grace is extremely chic and stylish, and she is wearing a Pucci beach dress. Princess Grace is pictured below while attending a swimming commotion, and she is sitting next to her husband, Prince Rainier, and her their children, Prince Albert, Princess Caroline, and Princess Stéphanie are sitting below them. If you look closely you can see Princess Caroline is also wearing her two-tone Rolex ladies Datejust.

In the two photos below taken in 1978 in New Jersey, we see Princess Grace with her daughter, Princess Caroline, who also wears Rolex watches. It is not so easy to see, but in the photo below we see Princess Grace wearing her Rolex Lady Date.

In the next photo below, also taken in July of 1978 in New Jersey, we see Princess Caroline with her husband, Philippe Junot, and in this photo, we get a good shot of his two-tone Rolex Datejust.

Princess Grace is pictured below with Princess Caroline in 1973, and they are both wearing Rolex watches.

Princess Caroline is pictured below on the cover of People Magazine in 1978, and she is wearing her two-tone Lady-Date Rolex.

Princess Grace is pictured below wearing her yellow gold Rolex Lady-Date.

This next photo shows Princess Grace at home working on an art project collage, and we see her ladies Rolex President bracelet on her wrist.

A Royal Rolex Affair

A Movie Star Becomes Royalty

Grace Kelly grew up in a wealthy Philadelphia family. She met Prince Rainier of Monaco at the 1955 Cannes Film Festival while she was promoting her movie 'To Catch A Thief', which she co-starred in with Cary Grant.

Princess Grace was an amazing style icon known for her timeless femininity. In the photo below we see Grace Kelly with Prince Ranier on January 5, 1956, as they arrive at the Philadelphia Country Club where they announced their wedding engagement.

Notice in the photo above and below Grace Kelly is carrying her Hermes purse, which over time became associated with her. Today it is known as the Hermès Kelly Bag.

Princess Grace and Prince Rainier are pictured below in Monaco during their wedding celebration.

Princess Grace and Prince Rainier are pictured below walking in London, England in 1959.

Princess Grace and Prince Rainier are pictured below visiting at the White House in Washington D.C., with President Kennedy and First Lady, Jackie Kennedy in 1963.

Princess Grace and Prince Ranier had three children: Princess Caroline of Hanover, 1957 (center), Prince Allbert II of Monaco, 1958 (left), and Princess Stéphanie, 1965 (right).

Prince Rainier, like his wife and daughter, also wore Rolex watches. In the photo below we see Rainier sporting a yellow gold Rolex GMT-Master (Mocha).

Prince Ranier is pictured below with his wife Grace, and daughter Caroline, and in the photo, he is wearing his Rolex Day-Date.

Prince Ranier is pictured below with his daughter Caroline at Princess Grace's funeral. You can tell by his facial expression that he is devastated. 

In the photo below we see Princess Stephanie, Prince Albert, Princess Caroline and Prince Rainier III several after Princess Grace passed away. Notice Princess Stephanie and Prince Rainier are both wearing Rolex Datejust models.

An Amazing Acting Career

Academy Award Winning Career

To Catch A Thief

1955

Grace Kelly was one of the most popular actresses in Hollywood in the 1950s, and one of her most famous roles was in A Catch To Thief, where she starred beside Cary Grant.

Mogambo

1953

Grace Kelly is pictured below with Clark Gable who she co-starred with in the 1953 movie named Mogambo. As we can see in the press photo below of Grace Kelly with Clark Gable which was a press photo from Magambo, Clark Gable is wearing his Rolex Oyster Perpetual.

Rear Window

1953

Grace Kelly is pictured below with Jimmy Stewart in the 1954 Alfred Hitchcock film named Rear Window.

Grace Kelly 

Reading The Silent World

Grace Kelly was a huge fan of Jacques-Yves Cousteau, and in the photos below we see her reading Jacques-Yves Cousteau's seminal 1954 book, titled The Silent World. Jacques Cousteau went on to create an Academy Award Winning Documentary, which was based on this book.

After reading Jacques-Yves Cousteau's Silent World book, Grace Kelly would become one of Cousteau's biggest supporters. In the photo below we see Prince Rainier III of Monaco with his wife, Princess Grace of Monaco, with Jaques Cousteau.

When we think about Jacques Yves-Cousteau, we often think of him aboard his beloved Calypso which is pictured below as she cruises past Monaco's Oceanographic Institute, which Cousteau was the Director of for 40 years, from 1957 until he passed away in 1997. Monaco's Oceanographic Institute is the oldest Marine Museum in the world, as it was inaugurated in 1910 by Prince Albert, who was Monaco's modernist reformer. You can learn much more about Jacques Cousteau in Monaco in Part 2 of my story on the all-new Single Red Rolex SEA-DWELLER.

In this last photo, we see Jacques-Yves Cousteau standing pictured on the left, with his wife Simone Cousteau, pictured on the far right, along with Princess Grace and Prince Rainier in Monaco.

Grace Kelly Documentary 

SHOCKING NEW ROLEX DAYTONA!! 24HRS Le Mans 100 Year Anniversary!!

SHOCKING NEW ROLEX DAYTONA!! 
24HRS Le Mans 100 Year Anniversary!!

Watch Eric just dropped this video where he shares his excitement and passion for Rolex's new 24 Hours of Le Mans special 100th Anniversary Daytona.

Rolex Tool Watching: Middle East Rolex as a Political Tool Watch...

The Complete History of Rolex In The

Middle East

Rolex as a Political Tool Watch 

Rolex's amazing reputation precedes it, as arguably the most prestigious brand in history, and as a result remains The International Mark of Success throughout the world today. The Middle East is no exception and in the photo below we see current Rolex CEO, Jean-Frédéric Dufour with tennis legend, Roger Federer celebrating the opening of the world's largest Rolex Boutique which opened last year in Dubai.

Emkwan takes us an an AMAZING tour of the worlds largest Rolex Story in the video below.



Esquire Magazine also created a great overview of the Rolex Boutique in this superb video:



In this fascinating story we are going to hop in The Rolex Time Machine and travel back more than a half-century to the Middle East to learn how Rolex became THE CHOICE for Kings, Sultans, Politicians and military leaders in the Middle East. We begin with this photo of Rolex founder, Hans Wilsdorf in Egypt, on the Giza Plateau located on the West bank of the Nile. 

In the photo above on the far left we see the famous Egyptian Sphinx which depicted a man with the body of a lion. The Sphinx is the oldest documented monumental sculpture in Egypt as it dates back to more than 4500 years to around 2540 B.C. In the background we see an ancient Egyptian Pyramid at the Giza Pyramid Complex. Hans Wilsdorf (founder of Rolex) is pictured on the left in the horse drawn carriage sitting next to a man named Evelpides who was a Rolex watch dealer in Egypt. We also see Hans Wilsdorf' wife sitting on the camel.

This next image above of Hans Wilsdorf was taken in 1949 in the Gulf Kingdom of Bahrain, which shows Hans Wilsdorf with Naj Murad, who founded Modern Art Studio in Bahrain, which remains a successful Rolex Authorized Dealer today. One thing is for sure and that is the fact Hans Wilsdorf loved traveling the world and kept in seemingly constant communication with the Rolex dealer network he built over more than half a century...

When we think of a Rolex tool watch, we typically think of a Submariner, GMT-Master or Daytona, but as we see in this story many powerful men used their Rolex Datejust and Day-Dates as tool watches as a symbol of leadership and integrity.

Rolex Tool Watching

In the photo below, discovered by Nick Gould, we see Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in 1965 rockin his Rolex Day-Date as he sits with his family while having a cup of tea near Abu Dhabi. Sheikh Zayad ruled Abu Dhabi for more than 30 years, and the photo below was taken just before he took over as the Ruler of UAE.

From Right to Left: HRH Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Sheikh Sultan Biz Zayed Al Nayhan (His second eldest son), and Obaid Rin Rashid Al Mansoori.

Speaking of Sheikhs wearing Rolex Day-Date models, we see Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani pictured below shaking hands with the Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Adile Sultan Palace in Instanbul in 2014. Notice Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani is wearing a Platinum Rolex Day-Date. It's fascinating to note that despite the fact the Sheikh pictured above and below are not related (at least, not that I am award of) they look so similar even though the photos were taken a half-century apart from one another! This image was also discovered by Nick Gould.

Rolex watches have also been very popular in the free state of Israel as wee see in the photo below on the wrists of Moshe Dayan and Ariel Sharon during the Yom Kippur War which took place from October 6 through October 25, 1973. 

ISRAEL

Military & Political Leadership

Let's start with taking a look at Rolex in Israel. I remember when I was a kid growing up in San Francisco in the late 1960s and early 1970s watching cartoons on the weekend, and there were these really confusing TV commercials for a show named "In The News." The commercials used to say things like "In Lebanon today, Palestinian Gorillas (PLO) hijacked an Airplane, or Gorillas attacked the Sinai peninsula and Golan Heights, or in the Suez Canal, or on the Gaza Strip and West bank—In The News." Of course they were saying 'Guerrillas', but as a small child of four to seven years old I thought they meant that Gorillas (as in very large monkeys) were attacking people in a bank :-) Little Kid Logic (LKL) is always a funny thing...

Rolex on the Wrists of Israel's Security Men

Moshe Dyan and Ariel Sharon pictured above both wearing Rolex Datejust watches on October 1, 1973 in the Suez Canal. Israeli Army Southern Command, General Ariel Sharon with Defense Minister, Moshe Dayan during the Yom Kippur War on the western bank of the Suez Canal in Egypt.

Israel is located on the Mediterranean Sea, and it's considered to be the Biblical Holy land by Jews, Christians and Muslims. Despite having such a historically significant background, Israel was founded in 1948 making it one of the youngest countries in the world. This section story is focused around four military men who helped form Israel into the country it is today. Every Israeli citizen is required to serve in the Military, so basically all politicians have a military background.

Israeli Prime Minister Levy Eshkol with Defense Minister, Moshe Dyan visiting an Israeli army camp in the West Bank after the Six-Day War in 1967.

This group of four men has been referred to as "Israel's Security Men" by Thomas G. Mitchell who wrote a book with that title. Mitchell coined the term "Military Politicians" in his book to describe these four men.

Moshe Dayan

Moshe Dayan is pictured below wearing his signature eyepatch which he gained as a result of loosing his eye in a battle in 1941.

Moshe Dayan appeared on the Sunday Morning CBS News TV show "Face The Nation" on December 9, 1973 and was wearing his Rolex Datejust. It doesn't just tell time. It tells history...

In the photo below we see Israel Chief of Staff, Moshe Dayan (Third from left) standing next to Ariel Sharon (second from left) on October 28, 1955. The other men in the photo were commanders of a raid in Kunteila, Egypt. 

Ariel Sharon

Rolex Datejust

Ariel Sharon joined the Israeli army in 1948 at its inception, and began as a paratrooper during the Israeli War of Independence, and continued to play a key role in each of the following wars.

Ariel Sharon is pictured below on October 31, 1973 in the Sinai Dessert in Egypt. At the time Ariel Sharon was the Southern Command General and in this photo he is standing on the banks of the Suez Canal, which is located in the Sinai Desert during the Yom Kippur War. Notice he is wearing a Rolex Datejust.

Ariel Sharon is pictured below on August 29, 1982 on the CBS Sunday Morning TV show named "Face The Nation". In this photo then, Israeli Defense Minister, Ariel Sharon is reviewing a map of Israel and Lebanon. Notice his Rolex Datejust on his wrist.

Yitzchak Rabin

Rolex Datejust

Yitzchak Rabin was an Israeli General, politician and statesman. He served as the 5th Prime Minister of Isreal for two terms from 1974-1977, and again in 1992 until he was assassinated in 1995.

In the photo above and two photos below we see Yitzchak Rabin wearing his Rolex Datejust on an Oyster bracelet.

Ehud Barak

In the 2011 photo below we see Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak hugging Leon Panetta who was the U.S. Defense Secretary. Barak is wearing a two-tone Rolex GMT-Master.

King Hussein

1935-1999

King Hussein of Jordan is pictured below with his wife Queen Alia and their children. King Hussein was the King of Jordan from 1952 until he passed away in 1999, and during his tenure as King had an AMAZING collection of Rolex watches.

The photo below was discovered by Nick Gould and shows King Hussein wearing an unusual Rolex Day-Date in 1962 on a Jubilee Bracelet.

This next photo of King Hussein was taken in 1982 and it shows him wearing his "Mocha GMT" on a Jubilee Bracelet.

Muammar Gaddafi


1942-2011

The photo below shows Libyan revolutionary and General, Muammar Gaddafi when he was a younger man, and notice he is wearing his Rolex Datejust.

In this next photo we see Muammar Qaddafi wearing his Rolex Datejust as he chats with King Hussein of Jordan who is wearing his Rolex GMT-Master, and on the far right we see Egyptian President, Anwar Sadat. This photo was taken on September 30, 1970 just after former Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser passed away.

Hosni Mubarak

1928-2020

Hosni Mubarak is a former Egyptian President (1981-2011), Prime Minister (1981-1982), Vice President (1975-1981) and military leader in the Egyptian Air Force where he served as a Commander from 1972-1975. He was born in 1928 and was ousted from office in 2011. In the photos below we see him wearing his two-tone Rolex GMT-Master on a Jubilee bracelet. I recall also seeing photos of him wearing a Rolex Dayt-Date which I will find and add to this story in the future.

Yassar Arafat

1929-2004

Yassar Arafat was the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) from 1969 until he passed away in 2004, and as we see he wore a Rolex Datejust on a Jubilee bracelet.

Saddam Hussein


1937-2006

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is pictured below on January 20, 1999 spoking a cigar near Bagdad in Iraq, and we is wearing a Rolex Datejust. 

I decided to consolidate all my previous stories on Arabic Rolex watches below. Rolex used to make special Rolex watches with custom artwork for the Arab markets and many of these vintage Arabic Rolex watches are considered to be highly collectable and valuable today:

Originally Published: April 1, 2018

A Different Kind Of 

Rolex President

Hafez al-Assad Custom Arabic Rolex Explorer Dial

[Reference 16550]

Back in 2010, Sotheby's auctioned this one-of-a-kind custom dial Rolex Explorer which belonged to Hafaz al-Assad, who was the President of Syria. It is a vintage 1989 Rolex Explorer II, and it is a very early version of the Polar dial Explorer II with white gold indices and matching white gold hands.

Originally Published: June 7, 2014

...Auction Results...

Sultan of Oman Rolex Day-Date Models

Record Setting Price Results at Christies Auction

Christies recently auction off some amazing Rolex watches on May 12, 2014, in Geneva, Switzerland that were made for the Sultan of Oman, and this auction included a number of Rolex Day-Date "Presidential" models that shattered previous records. We begin with this platinum Rolex Day-Date made which was made in 1974, and features a blue dial with a red Omani crest, coupled with diamond dial markers and with matching diamonds running around the bezel. This watch was estimated to sell for between $51,000 and $79,000, and it ended up selling for more than four times the estimate at $352,119!!! Basically, vintage Rolex watches are going through the roof at auction!!!

The next watch pictured below which features baguette cut baton markers cut from rubies on a yellow gold Rolex Day-Date [Made in 1984 Reference 18038, Caliber 3055], as well as the Omani crest on the dial. This watch was estimated to sell from between $42,000 to $82,000 and it ended up selling for $182,287!!!

On a side note, watches that were made by Rolex that feature Arab logos on the dial are typically know as "Arabic Rolex Watches."

Next up we see another yellow gold Rolex Day-Date made for the Sultan Of Oman, and this one was made in 1979, and it sold also had an estimate selling price of between $42,000 and $68,000, but sold for more than double at $168,700.

Originally Published: January 4, 2014

...Rolex Studio Shot Of The Day...

Ryan's United Arab Emirates GMT

Very Rare Blueberry Bezel on a NATO

The watch below recently cause a bunch of controversy which you can learn more about by checking out my story on the GMT-Blueberry Myth.

Originally Published: March 1, 2012

Omani Rolex Daytona Models

Arab dial logo custom Rolex watches are really cool and highly collectable. Today we look at two different versions of the same Rolex Daytona [Reference 6263]. This first one is from Stefano Mazzariol.

This next Omani dial Rolex Daytona [Reference 6263], has a green Omani sword logo and it appears courtesy of Cortez Ramon.

Originally Published: Feb 6, 2012

...Rolex Studio Shot Of The Day...

An Omani Rolex Cosmograph

Some of these vintage Rolex Chronographs with Arab dials are so cool looking, like this Omani Cosmograph.

Originally Published: March 11, 2010

Wrist Shot Of The Day

United Arab Emirates Daytona

Stainless Steel Rolex Daytona 6263

Rolex used to make customized dials for watches or countries. The "Arab Dial" watches are very highly collectible since they look so unusual and cool. This stunning example of a Rolex Daytona [Reference 6263] belongs to NBTimes.

Originally Published: October 23, 2009

Amanico's GMT Master

From The United Arab Emirates

Amanico took this stunning photo of his vintage Rolex GMT Master that was made for the United Arab Emirates. The UAE Eagle logo looks really cool!!! I never noticed before, but it appears the UAE Eagle has a sailboat symbol on its chest.

Originally Published: June 9, 2009

Omani Sea-Dweller

The dial on this very interesting looking Rolex Sea-Dweller [Reference 1665] has the emblem of the Sultanate of Oman which is a sheath over two crossed swords. These very rare watches were made in 1972 and given to the SAS (Special Air Service) regiment soldiers from the Sultan of Oman.

Photo Credit: Cortez Ramon




Originally Published: June 21, 2009

Amir of Qatar Rolex

The portrait on the dial of this custom-made Rolex is of the former Amir of Qatar whose name is Sheikh. Khalifa Al Thani.

This photo is of a Rolex watch sold by Christie's Auction house.

I find this Rolex watch to have very interesting design language and I think it looks very, very cool.

One of the details I noticed on this watch is that under the Rolex Crown on the dial it says Rolex and then it says "Geneve." 

I think that would mean the "Geneve" seal which is the highest Swiss Certification a watch can have. I don't recall ever seeing the "Geneve" seal on a Rolex before? Most Patek Philippe's have the "Geneve" seal.