In a special episode of Antiques Roadshow, Fiona Bruce took viewers to the Eden Project in Cornwall where she introduced the Queen Consort to roadshow visitors, who had brought their treasured items to be valued by the experts. Among the items was a rare silver gig trophy and a Ming Dynasty bronze Buddha. However, it was Rolex Submariner watch that caught the attention of expert Alastair.
As he inspected the watch, the expert began: “In the world of watches, wristwatches in particular, there’s nothing more unmistakable than a Rolex.
“And in that genre of Rolex, there’s nothing more unmistakable than a Rolex Submariner, it is just one of those great watches.
“Rolex designed this to have several functions, but one in particular, I know was of interest to you.”
“Yes, I used it for underwater swimming and spearfishing,” the guest replied.
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When discussing where he bought the watch, the guest explained he was in the navy at the time and it was in 1961.
He said: “We were on passage from Malta to Bahrain, and I’d saved up enough money to buy a Rolex and I got this one.”
Chatting about the history of the watch, Alastair shared: “Well, I think it’s a fantastic choice of watch.
“Back in 1953, Rolex decided they wanted to create a watch that would do pretty well anything.
“Yes, you could wear it when you were diving, you could wear it when you were doing action sports, but equally you could wear it when you were going out.
“And one of the most famous wearers of one of these watches was of course, Sean Connery as James Bond.”
“This particular model is the 5512,” he added as he described the watches’ features.
“It’s a really interesting watch, and with regards to originality, which is always key with collectors.
“Collectors love original hands, original dials, and to my mind, the bezel certainly looks like the original.”
“It is,” the guest nodded in agreement as Alastair continued: “You’ve got all the original purchase bills, you’ve got the box, and you’ve got the guarantee.”
When asked how much he paid for the Rolex, the guest explained: “On there it says 640 shillings and that is about £32. That was a lot of money then.”
“So how do you think it’s done?” the expert asked. “If I gave you £50 now it would give you a profit?”
Turning his attention to how much the watch could fetch at auction, he said: “It certainly is in the market to sell.
“And given this watch is in this condition, I would think that some would be very happy to pay between £20,000 and £30,000.”
“Wow,” the guest said in shock. “Was worth the trip.”
Antiques Roadshow is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
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