AN IN DEPTH LOOK AT THE ROLEX SEADWELLER 1665 “WHITE WRITINGS” DIALS

AN IN DEPTH LOOK AT THE ROLEX SEADWELLER 1665 “WHITE WRITINGS” DIALS

The Rolex Seadweller ref. 1665 was introduced in 1967 circa as a flagship watch in the Rolex sports collection. Specifically made for diving professionals who needed a reliable watch that could tackle the depths of the oceans, the Rolex Seadweller was one of the most formidable tool watches of the time. Today, due to its charm, technical and aesthetic characteristics, it is one of the most sought-after Vintage Rolex professional watches.

A Vintage Ad depicting the “Red Writing” Rolex Seadweller ref. 1665, Pic Courtesy Ad Patina.

The topic we want to deal with today is to draw up a precise and verified classification of the so-called “White Writings” dials that were mounted during the production of reference 1665.

With the term “White Writings” dials we mean those dials coming with the word “Seadweller – 2000 fT = 610m” printed in white unlike the earlier 1665 dials which had this writing in red, the famous 1665 Double Red Sea Dweller models.

The “White Writings” dials began to appear on the reference 1665 around 1977 gradually replacing the Double Red dials.

A 1665 Double Red Seadweller and a “White Writing” specimen side by side, Pics courtesy Christies.

The very first “White Writings” dial mounted on reference 1665 is the extremely rare Mk0.

Original Rolex Advertising depicting reference 1665 with the rare Mk 0 dial

The main characteristic of a Mk 0 dial is the very large “Sea-Dweller” wording that protrudes from the lower writings, something truly unique. This peculiarity led scholars to nickname this elusive dial as “Big White dial”.

The elusive Mk 0 “Big White” Dial

The Mk 0 dial was most likely a test dial by Rolex, this is probably the reason why there are some extremely rare micro-variants of which an example is reported below.

A Mk 0 dial variation, note the similarities in the graphics with a Mk4 Red Dial except for the oversized Seadweller writing
A comparison between a classic Mk 0 on the left and a probably unique micro-variant on the right

The more classic “White Writings” dials will gradually be assembled on 1665 specimens until the end of production of the reference around 1983.

Mk 1 Dial
Mk 2 Dial
Mk3 Dial
Mk4 Dial
Mk5 Tritium Service Dial
Mk6 Luminova Service Dial

Following a summary of 1665 “White Writings” dials :

Rolex Seadweller 1665 “White Writing” dials summary

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