Introduced in 1933 and produced long into the early 1950s, the Rolex Bubbleback saw countless variations of itself produced with various metals used and paired with one another, an exhaustive array of dial configurations and bracelets and straps utilized over its storied past. Featuring some distinctive hooded case designs and constructed from everything such as stainless steel, steel and gold, rose gold, and various weights of yellow gold, the Bubbleback was even powered by both, manual wind and automatic movements in the 1930’s such was its eclectic design history. As a result, the Rolex Bubbleback watches represent a very different Rolex than the sophisticated and clean brand that they have come to be in the last decade or so. Featuring a mix of designs for their luminous indexes and hands over the years, the Bubbleback models have come to signify a select period in Rolex’s history that collectors enjoy paying homage to in their collections. With their eponymous bubbled caseback, the Bubbleback still forms the linchpin of anyone’s collection that wants to pay homage to Rolex’s once quirky design language while owning a timepiece that is seldom seen today in the modern horological landscape.

Offered here we have a ladies Oyster Perpetual Chronometre ref. 3724 from within the Bubbleback family that features the eponymous bubble caseback but within a smaller case diameter than normal at just 23mm. Made of 18kt yellow gold and sporting a champagne dial with Arabic numerals and a running seconds subdial at 6 o’clock, this timepiece’s aesthetic is entirely monochromatic and rather understated – an appropriate choice for the time, giving it a rich mid-century vibe and feel on the wrist.

A rare ladies' version of the famed Bubbleback, the ref. 3724 was an unusual watch for its time given, the lack of ladies chronometre's in watchmaking's early days.