What Does "Oyster Perpetual" Mean?

How sad it would be if you own a Rolex while you don't know what
"Oyster Perpetual" is.

Is it referring a piece of Mother of Pearl or a complication of Perpetual Calendar?


(Rolex - Oyster Perpetual Yacht Master II Regatta Chronograph)

"Oyster Perpetual" is usually marked on the dial of a Rolex, i.e. you will see it on Air King, Datejust, Submariner, and Daytona, etc.

However, what does it mean?


(Rolex - Oyster 1926; The World First Truely Waterproof, Airtight Wristwatch;
By Courtesy of Antiquorum.com)


One day, Hans Wilsdorf the founder of Rolex hosted a dinner party and had a hard time in opening an oyster. Then, he made a comment to design a new watch which would prove to be as resilient as the mollusk to his guests. By 1926, the first "Oyster" was born, i.e. the first Rolex waterproof model.

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The word "Perpetual" in Rolex is believed to be derived from "Perpétuelles" by Breguet in the 18th century.

Based on the world first self-winding mechanism created by Perrelet in 1770, Breguet launched his own automatic movement, "Perpétuelles" in 1780. "Perpétuelles" is the French word for perpetual and would possibly be adapted by Rolex.

By 1931, the first "Perpetual" was born, i.e. the first Rolex automatic model.


(Rolex - Oyster Perpetual 1931; By Courtesy of Antiquorum.com)

http://www.rolex.com; http://www.antiquorum.com

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