Description
This 1956 34mm (43.2mm lug-to-lug) Rolex Oyster Meritus with gold-plated case ref. 6594 is very clean after a professional gold re-plating, which fully restored the case to its original splendour. The original Rolex automatic butterfly style caliber 1030 (adjusted to five positions) movement is keeping accurate time after a recent cleaning. The original ref. 6594 case back is stainless steel. The Rolex Oyster winding crown screws down like silk. Notice the original Dauphine hands and correct sweep seconds. The dial has the desired raised honeycomb pattern and raised gold Exporer configuration. This is the original rolex dial and the print has been restored faithfully as to the font-style of the original print. The Rolex Oyster Meritus is a variety made only for the Canadian market and is extremely uncommon. These watches were produced along side of the Rolex Explorer dress watches at the time that Rolex was experimenting with designs in the 1950s. We think these watches were only produced for one year, based on the fact that 1956 is the only year we have found this particular reference. The first three serial numbers (253) are visible, which is rare since they are often worn away from bracelets. We are just not finding these Meritus watches at all as of late. These watches appear larger than the average 34mm on the wrist, due to their extended lugs. This is a great-looking watch on the wrist, utilizing the same movement as the very valuable Rolex Submariner from the same era.