Steve McQueen’s ‘67 Rolex Submariner Sets Massive World Record Price

“The Rolex Submariner is a dime a dozen.”  That sometimes-voiced dismissal of the world’s best known dive watch–using dimes or dozens– certainly couldn’t be applied to the personal Ref. 5512 Submariner of tough-guy actor Steve McQueen.  The excellently kept circa-1967 Rolex Sub favored by the King of Cool likely widened a few eyes in the Antiquorum auction room when it sold for a herculean $234,000–a figure some twenty times the pre-sale estimate.  A resonant world record, for sure!

As with Patek Philippe, select vintage Rolex wristwatches have become as much of a “blue chip” as anything in the watch world can be.  The Rolex Submariner 5512 is one of the most handsome versions of Rolex’s iconic and evergreen dive watch, and a well-kept example usually gets fans of the five-point crown to all but stand up and applaud.  This one of course, also has the unique cachet of being associated with one of the most popular stars of the 60s and 70s.   Judging by the condition of the riveted Oyster band, the corrosion free hands, and the nearly unmarked case, McQueen must have respected it as well–giving it nice treatment, despite its Oyster-cased invulnerability.

Steve McQueen’s mystique also gave magic to the original steel Heuer (now TAG Heuer) Monaco wristwatch the actor donned through the popular racing film “Le Mans”.  A collector snapped this sporty piece of watch-and-movie memorabilia for a cool $87,600—again, a very solid world record in its category.  I’ll voice my agreement with Antiquorum’s post sale assessment; there’s no question that watches with outstanding rarity, historical importance and other such intangibles are hotter than they’ve ever been.

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