Rolex Stella Dials
The Rolex design team must’ve been dabbling into psychedelic drugs when they came up with the funky Stella dials for their flagship model. These dials weren’t particularly popular. After all, you had to be a gentleman (or lady) of considerable means to be able to afford a Day-Date and it was unlikely that a person of that stature would wear a watch with such a loud dial. As a result, not many were made; and by now you should know that this is a parameter collectors value highly. Welcome to this very colorful watch guide.
We will chop it up into What, Who, How and When. We left the “Why” out of the equation, as so often is the case with Rolex’ history, it would come down to mere speculation.
What:
We have to establish what makes it a “Stella”. Until recently, many thought it was a moniker used because of its shiny surface, as “Stella” translates to “star” in Italian. Another theory was that it was named after Frank Stella, an artist that used a lot of colors in his work. Whilst Stella dials are indeed shiny and colorful, the name derives from the supplier of the lacquer: a Swiss company called Stella S.A. Interestingly enough, “Stella dial” isn’t merely a nickname, Rolex themselves also labelled it as “Lacquered Stella” in internal documents, such as master catalogues.
Who:
So we also pinned down the who. Yet, Stella SA is only the distributor of the paint and did not manufacture the end product. This was in the hands of some of Rolex’ usual artisans at Stern, Lemrich and Singer.
How:
Eventhough the gloss and richness in pigment might remind you of enamel, the proces of creating this surface is way less artisanal and therefore suitable to produce on a bigger scale. Yet, it did require some craftmanship. Firstly, the paint was mixed by hand, hence there is so much variety in tones. If you compare seemingly similar hues side by side, chances are they all differ slightly from one another.
The application of the varnish to the metal baseplate is done by a highly trained professional, operating a spray gun. To give the vibrancy these dials are known for and to increase durability, many layers have to be applied. This is quite time consuming, as each coating needs to dry off before it can receive a new one. The last being a transparant layer to seal it, which is then polished by hand.
With a specific type of Stella, known as “dégradé“ or “vignette“, previously mentioned technique is used with the dial on a rotating platform. The varnisher than applies more layers as he moves towards the periphery of the dial, limiting the translucency of the paint and making it gradually darker.
When this labor intensive proces is completed, the graphics are applied. This doesn’t vary from most usual Rolex dials from this era: padprinting by a cliché. Due to the many layers and blank film, the raised text with serifs gives the impression that its floating a bit, creating appealing depth. There are 3 colors of graphics. Whilst black can be used on either yellow or white metal models, generally gold printing is reserved for yellow gold Day-Dates and silver printing for platinum and whitegold.
Before the tritium (optionally) finds its way to the dial, the markers are set. 2 Type of indices are known to be used on Stella’s: either baton or diamonds. Last mentioned has a square settings with brilliant cut diamonds and baguette-shaped at the 6 and 9. These gemset markers are always in whitegold, regardless of the Day-Date. With the baton markers the metal of the index usually matches the case, just like the coronet. As there are holes to mount the hourmarkers and the coronet, the descending paint creates charming dimples in the glaze. Here is also where one could possibly encounter cracking or hairlines. it is important to examine the condition of the “canvas” carefully, as it plays a defining factor in setting the value. Other defects that might occur are slight bubbling of the lacquer or partially missing graphics.
When:
It is time to break down the “when”, where we will dive in the different generations. Starting with the primary series: production of these dials most likely started in the late 60’s/ early 70’s. Prior to 1978 the Day-Date did not yet have a quickset function nor sapphire crystal. The 18xx- reference has a “pie-pan” dial, meaning it sports a sloped periphery. Also, the dial is kept in place on the movement like a cap, instead of fixed with dial feet; which we see in 5 digit references. To many collectors this is the prime era for cherished Stella dials as this profile gives it a dynamic look. The attractive aesthetics of the glossy and thick lacquer is also greatly enjoyed at the edge of the day and date aperture. Especially during this first-generation Stella dial you can see a Bathtub-like effect here. They come either with baton markers or diamonds instead. Very rarely the stones are unusually large, characteristic for platinum models. Some dials have a so-called “Rail dial” lay-out of the Chronometer certification. The dial is always signed T Swiss T at the bottom.
In 1978 Rolex started mounting the dials via feet and the dial becomes flat instead. The luminescent compound in the hands and plots also changed from tritium zinc sulfite to tritium zinc silicate. Practically this means there shouldn’t be any afterglow when exposed to UV-light.
Only briefly these dials were still signed T Swiss T before they switched to the third generation: signed T Swiss made T. For the first time this is lined out above the minute track, with exception of Vignette dials.
For the fourth and final generation the open minute track disappears and makes way for a closed one with Roman numerals. Unlike all previous versions, this one only exists with baton markers. There is no Vignette dial with Roman hourtrack, but there is a variety of a string dial, where the minutetrack is closed by diamonds.
Just like many things Rolex, there is no exact math to it. Apart from the 1st series, which was only created until 1978 for practical reasons, it is impossible to set exact production dates for the other generations. Please also bear in mind that it was oftentimes ordered on request and therefore a Stella dial could find its way to an earlier Day-Date. Or the other way around; a Stella dial that was sitting at Rolex headquarters or an authorized dealer, perhaps waiting years to be mounted in a more recent Day-Date. Common sense should be applied to determine if its plausible to be deemed period correct. Funnily enough, the mid-eighties “dial selection for special dials” mentions there is no supplement to be paid for Stella dials.
These days however, there is a huge surcharge to these flamboyant timepieces. Valuewise -apart from condition- the 1st generation is generally the rarest. Vignette’s aren’t as costly as their monochrome counterparts. Also, Stella’s for white metal with silver printing fetch premiums over the ones made for yellow gold. In our experience, non gem-set pieces tend to sell a tad faster.
Pricing might be rather subjective, but supply and demand dictates the figure. Just like with vintage Daytonas, the lack of popularity during its production run caused for a relatively small output. Thus, the -back in the days- least favorable tints are among the rarest: Yellow, lilac, Seafoam and Salmon rate quite high. The easily likeable, such as the Oxblood, are currently the cheapest.
Conclusion
If you got bored of the conservative and pragmatically designed Rolex wristcompanions; look into the diversity this vivid depiction of the Day-Dates has to offer. This wilder side of Rolex has proven itself, over the last couple years, to be very captivating to collect. You can really still be taken by surprise and I feel like this potential hasn’t gone unnoticed as even Rolex re-integrated bright colors in their assortment. Yet, these steel and less artisanal crafted Oyster Perpetuals don’t quite provide the juxtaposition of luxury and provocative bright colors.
There is one contemporary exception. An elusive special order, where Singer provided Yellow dials; made with the same technique and printed with the original tampon. This non-commercial project from 2013, rumored to be for some high-ranking executives and important collectors, also included 4 colors for the Valjoux Daytona. Subscribe to my channel to find out more about this in a future video.