1803, DAY-DATE, ONYX DIAL

A ref. 1803 Day-Date in 18k yellow gold with a black onyx dial. The onyx is cut from real stone, deep and glossy, with the day spelled out in full at twelve and the date at three. With so little printed on it, the gold hands and the stone do all the talking. A fluted bezel, the signature of Rolex's precious metal watches, catches light from every angle on the 36mm Oyster case. It came on a black lizard strap, a dressier and more unusual choice than the President bracelet. It was photographed with a Rolex box.

The Day-Date launched in 1956 as the first wristwatch to display both the date and the day of the week spelled out in full. Rolex offered it only in gold and platinum, never steel, and it quickly became known as the President. The 1803 arrived around 1960 and served as the yellow gold, fluted bezel Day-Date for most of the next two decades. Stone dials joined the Day-Date in the 1970s and remain among the most coveted dial options in the reference. Onyx in particular gives the watch a completely different character from the classic champagne dial.

Look at that dial. A slab of black onyx under the crystal, polished so it reflects like water, and almost nothing printed on it beyond the day and date. Stone is unforgiving to cut and finish, and a stone dial still stops people in their tracks. Against yellow gold and a fluted bezel, the black turns the Day-Date from a statement of status into something closer to jewelry. On black lizard it becomes an evening watch in the best sense. This is the President for someone who wants the most interesting version of it. Curated with intent.