Review: Rolex Cosmograph 'Exotic Dial'
Reviewing a pre-Daytona, exotic-dialled Rolex Cosmograph 6240 is a little daunting to say the least, and not only because it's a fifty-year-old piece of extremely valuable Rolex history, but also because it has such a loyal following. This is one of those pieces that many talk about and few ever see, the piece known as the 'grail', an almost mythical steel beast that exists only in the pages of dusty books. So what's it like to experience as a mere mortal, in the metal? Does it stand up to its legendary status? It is, after all, only a watch—isn't it?
The first introduction of the 6240 is a little like that first hold of a newborn. It's small, it's delicate—Lord knows it's valuable—and I take it gingerly with two hands, simultaneously avoiding crushing it with my clumsy fingers and holding it so delicately that I drop it. As I cup the back and support the head, I carry it carefully to a secure surface, where I lay it down on a soft cloth and then realise that I'd been holding my breath the entire time. It's hard to forget just how rare and expensive it is—there's no fixing it or making a new one.
And it's tiny, so very, very tiny; the 37mm case is a size rarely seen on a modern gents watch. Even the bracelet—fashioned from metals strips folded back on themselves—is wafer-thin and weighs barely anything. Confident I'm not going to kill it, I carefully put it on, clipping the flimsy clasp together and praying it doesn't snap open and try to commit horological suicide.
Let's take this brief moment of clarity to remind ourselves why this watch is so rare. I'd love to tell a tale of bravery and heroics, but frankly, I can't. This watch is rare because no one wanted one. When the Cosmograph was finding its feet in the sixties, during the time when Rolex began sponsoring the Daytona Speedway races, there were two versions of the Cosmograph: the standard dial and the exotic dial. The standard dial didn't sell very well and the exotic dial didn't sell at all. Fifty years later, that equates to shortage.
So how does that make this tiny, fragile watch worth so much? Rarity is the hard-core Rolex collector's mantra, and when demand outweighs supply, the price goes up. And up. Then up some more. Some might say it's not worth it, that it's just the result of bored people with a fair wedge of spare cash fighting over the same thing, but I disagree. I wasn't holding it with such care because I fear it and the consequences of its demise (although I probably should)—it was because I admire it and the era that it represents.
Watch Spec | Rolex Cosmograph 6240 'Exotic Dial'
Case: Stainless steel Dimensions: 37mm dia, 14mm thick Crystal: Plexiglass Movement: Cal. 722, based on Valjoux 72, manual Frequency: 18,000 vph Strap: Stainless steel Functions: Time, chronograph, screw-down pushers | Shop Now
