This is a fine Rolex Explorer II, a model appeared in Rolex catalogs in 1971 as the reference 1655. This watch is extremely clean with a perfect dial, strong case and lugs, and a full length bracelet. This watch comes with box, hang tag, papers and a service receipt from Rolex.
Instead of a refined upgrade of the Explorer, the Explorer II is a completely unique watch of its own. Featuring a 24-Hour calibrated bezel, the purpose was to provide miners to differentiate between night and day in tremendous caving expeditions.
Whilst referred by collectors as “freccione” which translates to “big arrow”, indicating the oversized and neon-like orange center hand, a feature intended to further facilitate the reading of the 24-hour cycle in low light conditions (such as can be found, indeed, in caves).
The reference 1655 was produced in five different variations (marks) and with two known additional service dials (one with tritium and the other with luminova). The present example is fitted with a Mark I dial with < 25 T designation on the dial.
Model Explorer II, Reference 1655
Movement Automatic
Movement/Caliber 1570
Power reserve 48 h
Number of jewels 26
Frequency 19800 A/h
Year of production 1983
Case diameter 40 mm
Condition Excellent, hardly any signs of wear
Original box, original papers, service papers
