Rolex Submariner Ref. 6538 'James Bond' (big crown)
- Maker
- Rolex
- Year
- 1956-1959
- Rank
- 9 of 100
Rolex Submariner Ref. 6538 'James Bond' (big crown)
Rolex Submariner Ref. 6538 'James Bond' (big crown) by Rolex (1956-1959) is ranked 9 in the FLOAT 100 for Watches. It sold for $567,000 in December 2017. The original 'James Bond' Submariner worn by Sean Connery in Dr. No — the most historically significant vintage Sub.
What is it, and why is it in the FLOAT 100?
The original 'James Bond' Submariner worn by Sean Connery in Dr. No — the most historically significant vintage Sub.
Ref. 6538, 'big crown' 8mm, 4-line/explorer dials, no crown guards
What is the best-sourced number for it?
- Figure
- $567,000
- Kind
- Realized at auction
- Date
- December 2017
Best-preserved 6538 realized $567,000 at Phillips; museum-grade examples reach $200K-$1M+ (record $1,068,500 Christie's). Condition-representative high-grade figure used.
This is a realized sale. Somebody paid it. Source.
How this is made
- The figure
- One reference price, taken from a named public source and shown with its own kind. FLOAT does not average it with anything or adjust it for time.
- Realized or not
- A realized price is a completed sale. A market asking price and a price-guide value are not sales, and are labeled as such wherever they appear.
- Why no grade ladder
- Most FLOAT 100 entries are individual objects. There is one of this, so there is no population and no spread across grades to show.
- Archive
- 2026-08-08