Dear friends of IWS, welcome back to our magazine!
Today, we’re here to tell you the story of one of the sporty watches from the crowned house that was of vital importance to cave explorers. Known to all collectors as the Rolex “Freccione” or “Big Arrow” we’re talking about the Rolex Explorer reference 1655, which has always held a special place in the heart of every enthusiast.
Let’s now discover all the details of this historic watch that has become the object of desire for many enthusiasts today.
Rolex Explorer II ref. 1655
The Rolex Explorer II 1655, famous among the fans of the crowned house, was introduced in 1971 and came in different versions with small graphical updates on the dial and bezel. These details, undoubtedly, have made this watch highly collectible and sought after in all its variations.
Interestingly, like most of the crowned house’s sports watches, this true tool watch, specifically intended for speleologists at the time, was not at all considered a status symbol as it is today.
Born for a real need in the field, this watch was equipped with an unusual fixed steel bezel on which the 24 hours of the day were marked. On the bezel, you can see the even numbers in Arabic numerals and the odd numbers represented with hash-shaped indices, which represent the hours of the day or night, through the indication of the orange arrow on the dial.
Thanks to this large arrow, from which the nickname “Freccione” comes from the world of collectors, it is easy to understand whether the watch is indicating daytime or nighttime hours. This complication was extremely helpful for speleologists who, spending many days inside caves, could easily lose their sense of time and confuse day with night.
Powered by the 26-jewel 1575 caliber, this automatic movement is enclosed within a 39 mm diameter steel oyster case. Thanks to the screw-down crown and case back, this watch is waterproof up to 100 meters, a very important feature for speleologists who sometimes had to deal with water during their explorations.
Produced until 1985, the Rolex Explorer II 1655 is characterized by a black dial with contrasting tritium luminescent indices. During the 15 years of production of this model, a total of seven different dials were made: five by Stern, plus two service dials produced by Beyeler.
At 12 o’clock, you can see the iconic triangle opposed to the rectangular indices placed at 6 and 9 o’clock. Given the rather particular design of the dial, collectors soon nicknamed it “Disco Dial” due to its resemblance to a 70s disco dance floor.
Although highly sought after today, this watch did not have great success when it was born. Sales were quite poor to the point that Rolex decided to start using testimonials that could advertise this watch.
Among these was chosen one of the most famous Hollywood icons of all time, Steve McQueen. Thanks to the association with the cinema star, this watch was soon named “Rolex Steve McQueen” by collectors.
But what are the various versions of this watch produced over its 15 years?
At this point, we must distinguish, as they say in jargon, the various “Mark” of the dials as well as those of the bezel.
The dials
MK1
The first dial produced for the ref. 1655 of the crowned house featured a large crown at 12 o’clock and the foot of the “R” in Rolex rounded. At 6 o’clock, you can notice the inscription “T SWISS T” indicating the presence of tritium as the luminescent material of indices and hands.
MK2
Similar to the first series dial, in this second version, we can notice the presence of a brand crown with a different design, especially regarding the points of the crown which are thicker. The second difference is given by the space of the word “PERPETUAL,” which is narrower than the previous dial.
Still looking at the “PERPETUAL” inscription, you see that the upper part of the “L” is aligned with the lower right part of the letter “X”. This is different compared to the Mark 1, where under the “X” we find the letter “A”.
Last but not least, in this second version of the dial we find again the inscription “T SWISS T” at 6 o’clock.
MK3
This third dial is known among collectors as the “Rail Dial.” In this third version, the logo crown is wider, more defined, and symmetrical. In the lower part of the dial, in addition to the inscription “T SWISS T,” you can see the details of the inscription “SUPERLATIVE CHRONOMETER OFFICIALLY CERTIFIED” where the letters C of CHRONOMETER and CERTIFIED are aligned vertically.
MK4
In this fourth version of the dial, the brand crown is narrower and taller. The alignment of the text of the word “PERPETUAL” is the same as the MK2 dial. The most striking feature of this third dial is the inscription “T SWISS < 25 T” with a serif font instead of “T SWISS MADE T,” demonstrating that the tritium used on this dial version emitted less than 25mCi.
MK5
The last version of the dial of the ref. 1655 of the crowned house always features the inscription “T SWISS < 25 T” at 6 o’clock but without a serif font. The logo crown at 12 o’clock is narrower with a larger opening in the base oval.
Service Dials
The service dials were available after the production of the watch and were produced to be provided during the maintenance of the watches in the following decades in case the watch required an intervention on the dial.
Continuing with the differences in the dial, another notable detail lies in the seconds hand which, at the beginning of production, had a straight, needle-like shape. Later, a luminescent dot was added to this hand, almost giving it a “lollipop” shape, which led collectors to name this component “Lollypop.”
The Bezel
Regarding the fixed steel bezel, over the 15 years of production of the reference, it was made in four different versions. In addition to these variants, a supply bezel was also created, like the dials, for any subsequent repairs of this component of the watch.
MK1
The first bezel of the reference is distinguished by numbers with a thick font, and the edge of these numbers is near the inner edge of the bezel. This component is present on watches with MK1 and MK2 dials.
MK2
In this second version, the font of the numbers is still thick, and the figures are centered. This variant of the bezel can be found partly with MK1 dials and with MK3 and MK4 dials.
MK3
In this third version, which can be found on MK3 and MK4 dials, we find characters with a thin line positioned in the center of the bezel.
MK4
The last created version of the bezel features a thin and different font compared to the others. The substantial difference can be noticed by observing the character “1.” This fourth version of the bezel can be found combined with MK5 dials.
Considerazioni finali
Like every historic Rolex sports model, the reference 1655 is today one of the most sought-after models of the crowned house in all its variants. Although they may sometimes seem all similar, the various versions of this reference contain small details that distinguish them and make one version rather than another the most sought after by collectors.
I often find it incredible that a watch, born as a tool with a very specific use and that did not have great success when it was initially marketed to the whole world, can become such a desired object.
But after all, this is the beauty of the world of watch collecting, namely making something special that contains a story within it and was conceived for a specific use.
If you are a fan of Rolex and want to learn more about vintage, I invite you to read our guide dedicated to the Rolex Daytona with 4 digits.
Visit our Youtube channel to experience the best of the watchmaking world firsthand.
For all real-time updates, follow us on Instagram.For all real-time updates, follow us on Instagram.
