'State of Qatar' 16014 Rolex Datejust

Trigger warning here, I’m about to assault an icon. I’ve always found the name Datejust a bit hilariously apologetic. It’s as if Hans himself went, ‘Well, we can do a Day-Date, but this one is just a date, sincerest apologies.’ Make no mistake, any DJ is an excellent watch. But this one has less to apologize for than most, because it’s not ‘just’ a Date at all. It’s a State of Qatar, one of the more visually unique and scarcely seen Middle Eastern dials out there.

As you might expect, these were often given as gifts to higher-ups in government and friends of the state. Compared to Oman stamps, these are quite a bit less common. I’ve seen the Qatar mark on Rolex from the late 70s and early 80s, but not much outside that window. But the orders Qatar did make were wide ranging, this emblem is on 5500 Air Kings, Day-Dates, Datejusts, and even the odd 16250 Turn-O-Graph.

The word written underneath the emblem is Khalifa, meaning ruler of the state. Interestingly, the Khalifa signature in Arabic is only present about half the time under or above the State of Qatar emblem. I haven’t seen any scholarship on this, but I have to wonder if it’s a bit like the khanjar dials where those with the crown above were actually from the Sultan for immediate associates. Either way, it’s a damn great dial and not just a Rolex with date any longer.

And it’s great nick. The case is full, the dial shows no damage at all. It’s case and bracelet have light even surface wear. Tritium’s all there and light cream. It comes from a well-regarded EU retailer.

Find this State of Qatar Datejust here from Stories of Time for 12200 USD.