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The Best of Time: Rolex Wristwatches : An Unauthorized History
The name of Rolex is recognized around the world. It has become an icon of beauty, quality, accuracy, style, and taste. While there are other fine manufacturers of timepieces, none has reached this pinnacle of public respect and acclaim. The watches produced by Rolex over the last 90 years are celebrated in this lavishly illustrated new volume. Mssrs. Dowling and Hess, acknowledged Rolex authorities, have captured their beauty in full color photography. They accompany the most thorough and extensive history ever written of the company. Information for collectors and current market values of the watches makes this a truly useful volume and one that will be cherished by watch lovers around the world., 392 photos , 9" x 12", Price Guide
- GenresHistory
420 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 3, 2020
Who does not know Rolex? Rolex is one of the world's most well-known brands. This book talks about the history of some of the most iconic Rolex models such as the Submariner and the Date-just. I would recommend this book to people who are interested in vintage Rolex watches. This book helped me understand the reference numbers and the small differences with the designs in some of the models. Without the work, I would not be able to diffract some of the watches from different years.
January 21, 2017
It's a great overall history of Rolex. I bought a used copy, and it will get you up to speed quicker than you can on your own. Highly recommended!
November 1, 2014
The Best of Time: Rolex Wristwatches doesn't seem to know what it wants to be.
A coffee table book? Reference guide? Historical record with context and insight? It's anyone's guess. Having its third edition in-hand for this review, I've concluded that authors James M Dowling and Jeffery P Hess must have settled into a complacency of leaving such fundamental questions for the reader to figure out.
Good luck.
To borrow a phrase from the movie Beetlejuice, "This book reads like stereo instructions." Starting with its Contents page, we're faced with a hodgepodge of titles that include quasi-arrangement by date, bad cliché, model names, topics, back again to time-periods, and so on.
Large sections of prose end abrubtly, switching to pages of photographs of wristwatches, documents, and miscellania in medias res. And these spreads, too, show a mixed bag. A lot of images are on-topic. But they're too-often salted with additions that don't at all seem connected. Used, why? 'cause we had 'em layin' around? These photographs are far from art. Neither do they much contribute to technical understanding.
And what's with the use of busy map, currency, and other textured grounds? This approach is not creative; it's distracting. If the intent is to watermark, then for Pete's sake, be straight and watermark.
Most aggregious, key reference information, even as late as this third edition, is demonstrably wrong. See for example Appendix 3, "Hallmarks & Oyster Case Numbers" for dating wristwatch production. And, no, the 6538 and 6536 Submariners are not "the ones generally known amongst collectors as the 'James Bond' models," nor are they in fact James Bond models.
Is it too much to ask that James Dowling or Jeff Hess check such outrageous assertions against easily-accessible Christie's auction records? One of them might even have taken five minutes to Google it.
Against all of this, The Best of Time: Rolex Wristwatches excells and adds real value to understanding these important timepieces when focused on mechanics. The why and how of fitting this with that. Explaining design in terms of need and function. Discussing failures as well as successes.
Substantiating what differentiates a Rolex watch a Rolex watch.
But that information comes at too high a price.
A coffee table book? Reference guide? Historical record with context and insight? It's anyone's guess. Having its third edition in-hand for this review, I've concluded that authors James M Dowling and Jeffery P Hess must have settled into a complacency of leaving such fundamental questions for the reader to figure out.
Good luck.
To borrow a phrase from the movie Beetlejuice, "This book reads like stereo instructions." Starting with its Contents page, we're faced with a hodgepodge of titles that include quasi-arrangement by date, bad cliché, model names, topics, back again to time-periods, and so on.
Large sections of prose end abrubtly, switching to pages of photographs of wristwatches, documents, and miscellania in medias res. And these spreads, too, show a mixed bag. A lot of images are on-topic. But they're too-often salted with additions that don't at all seem connected. Used, why? 'cause we had 'em layin' around? These photographs are far from art. Neither do they much contribute to technical understanding.
And what's with the use of busy map, currency, and other textured grounds? This approach is not creative; it's distracting. If the intent is to watermark, then for Pete's sake, be straight and watermark.
Most aggregious, key reference information, even as late as this third edition, is demonstrably wrong. See for example Appendix 3, "Hallmarks & Oyster Case Numbers" for dating wristwatch production. And, no, the 6538 and 6536 Submariners are not "the ones generally known amongst collectors as the 'James Bond' models," nor are they in fact James Bond models.
Is it too much to ask that James Dowling or Jeff Hess check such outrageous assertions against easily-accessible Christie's auction records? One of them might even have taken five minutes to Google it.
Against all of this, The Best of Time: Rolex Wristwatches excells and adds real value to understanding these important timepieces when focused on mechanics. The why and how of fitting this with that. Explaining design in terms of need and function. Discussing failures as well as successes.
Substantiating what differentiates a Rolex watch a Rolex watch.
But that information comes at too high a price.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews