Mark 2 ‘Freccione’ 1655 Rolex Explorer II

The 1655 is one of the strangest anachronisms of the Rolex four-digit. By comparison to a GMT or Sub, it takes a very specific kind of collector: one who appreciates the start of a story, how a case wears, and dial beauty to exclusion of utility. We usually think of the Explorer II today as an understated rival to the GMT, for its ability to quickly time a secondary time zone with a jumping hour hand. The 1655 predates the independently jumping hour hand (started with the 16550), which means the 24-hour hand and 12-hour hand are always synced. In effect, it tells the same one time as a 1016 Explorer, just louder, with more style, and twice. It’s a sort of Mick Jagger to the 1016’s Steven Tyler. Functionally, it doesn’t make any sense today. And because it’s off the beaten path, that’s kind of the whole point. You have to be an Explorer of the four digit years to really love it.

For starters: no, we don’t call this the ‘Steve McQueen’ because he never wore one. The Italians just made it up, as they do. If you must have a name, use Anthony Kiedis (front man of the Red Hot Chili Peppers), Jason Statham, or Reinhold Messner, because all of those guys actually wore one. I quite like the sound of calling this the Statham, but unequivocally Reinhold Messner is the coolest here and he’s of the era.

If you are to seek out a practical use case, the 1655 is probably the sole watch on Earth best at distinguishing between AM and PM, thanks to its huge orange hour hand that gives it the accurate ‘Freccione’ nickname. The idea in 1971 was to create an Explorer for spelunkers and Arctic explorers, for use in places so far removed from life that it becomes difficult to distinguish between AM and PM. This was done through a fixed bezel that couldn’t accidentally be bumped and a huge hand. Much the same as the 6541 Milgauss for CERN scientists, Rolex didn’t seem to care very much that cave exploring was quite a niche market. The 1655 sold poorly in period, but is today appreciated for simply looking fantastic with its tritium and 24-hour bezel. And that’s enough. So much so that Rolex, Tudor, and even Longines, strangely, have decided to try their hand at reissuing it. It is a timeless design, even if not the most functional. Collectively, we adore it.

This example is a Mk2, with what collectors will call a ‘frog foot’ coronet for the way its points splay out. Practically, this example is one to be worn. The case bears honest chamfers and perhaps a light polish, but is not restored and not over polished. Brushing is starting to wear off the lug tops and the bevels aren’t perfectly defined. But that’s just fine for a tool watch. The dial has a light cream tritium that oozes charm, all tritium in that big orange hand still intact too. Quite the attractive and strange anachronism, a great example. This one comes from a well-regarded US retailer.