Black Gilt Dial, First Series 2508 Rolex Anti-Magnetic Chronograph

The Rolex chronograph as we know it extends far earlier than the Daytona name. It extends earlier even than Oyster Cases and WWII, to the mid 1930s. This is the ref. 2508, a steel two-register chronograph with a silver gilt, black dial. It’s the very first two-register, two-button Rolex Chronograph. Rolex chronographs before 1950 are all over the place, just look up the square 3830. But this was where they got it right, and it’s far more modern than you might think.

The 2508 is seen in two major iterations. The first is this, an olive-pusher 37.2mm case with a very wide, flat bezel that’s quite Calatrava-like. The second generation has a thinner bezel and 36mm proportions. There are a bewildering number of dial configurations, not to mention hands. But all are underpinned by a Valjoux 22, a chronograph which barely changed through the 72 3-counter until the Zenith movements.

If you examine all 2508 which have auctioned, you’ll find black dials to be the exception more than the rule. Generally they’re worth multiples of white dial examples, collectors have a strong preference here. This dial is gilt but with silver print, so maybe galvanic is a more apt description. Interestingly, few known examples share even remotely the same dial configuration. There are all indices, all numerals, sector dials, and any number of designs for the scales. This is a very classic dual-Arabic numeral, made by feuille hands which you don’t see often. Notice the dial here is signed Swiss made and Fab Suisse, it’s quite odd but at this time Rolex blended French and English on almost every dial.

Anyone serious about a 2508 usually knows how to assess them, and there’s a wide variance in values depending on condition and specification. That’s why we’ve seen results from 413k CHF for a lovely black gilt dial with this oversized case down to 35k for a white dial in the smaller case (both of those results were in the same year).

This example sports a light, even, and lovely patina. The case is strong, with brushing on the lug top and stout edges. It comes from a well-regarded retailer in Italy.