Everything has a name, and each name has a meaning and a reason for being named. So, what is the origin of the name of that famous watch? In this column, we will explore the secrets behind the names of watches and introduce them along with their anecdotes.
This time, we will explore the origin of the name of the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona, a current stainless steel model that is now extremely difficult to obtain.
Rolex Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona
When viewing the Cosmograph Daytona on the Rolex website, it states, "Introducing the Cosmograph Daytona in 1963, it was designed to meet the needs of professional race car drivers." It continues to feature racing imagery, giving the impression that this watch is specifically designed for racing. It also states, "The Daytona International Speedway opened in 1959, and Rolex has been the official timepiece of the circuit ever since. A few years later, to further its connection to this American race track, a new model was named the Cosmograph Daytona."
However, it's hard to believe this story as it is, as it seems like a story that was invented later.
The name is a bit odd. The official name of the "Cosmograph Daytona" is the "Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona." However, before that it was the "Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph," and the name "Daytona" was only added after the watch was equipped with the in-house movement, Cal. 4130, in 2000.
So the statement that "the Cosmograph Daytona was born in 1963" is completely wrong. And it shouldn't be "named the Cosmograph Daytona" just "a few years later," but "decades later." In other words, it's completely untrue. And if that's the case, the statement that "it was designed to meet the needs of professional race car drivers" becomes questionable. It really does seem like a story.
So why did Rolex want to create such a story? And what exactly is the "Daytona"? To answer this question, let's first look back at its history.
The first "Cosmograph Daytona" model was born in 1963. Since chronographs had not yet become automatic, it was not a "Perpetual" model, and chronographs could not be made completely waterproof, so it was not called an "Oyster." However, it was named "Oyster Cosmograph" because it was waterproof. Some models even had the word "DAYTONA" on the dial. It is true that this was named after the Daytona International Speedway. However, "Daytona" was not a model name; it was simply a variation on the dial.
Now, on a more personal note, I owned an Oyster Cosmograph in the 1980s, the final model with a manual winding, Oyster case, and screw-down chronograph pushers, also known as the "third generation" or "third model." It was still the current model at the time, and Rolex was experiencing a worldwide boom. This coincided with the economic boom in Japan, where Rolex was the ultimate status symbol.
However, even among these, the Oyster Cosmograph was completely unpopular. I later learned that it was unpopular worldwide as well. The chronograph did not seem very Rolex-like, and the manual winding mechanism also did not seem very Rolex-like. The fact that the movement was made by another company (using an ebauche movement from the movement manufacturer Valjoux) also did not seem very Rolex-like, and was therefore unpopular.
For this reason, the Oyster Cosmograph was probably not widely distributed. Among them, it was rare to see a model with "DAYTONA" written on the dial. Therefore, I think that there were very few "Daytonas."
However, it suddenly became extremely popular worldwide. Around 1988, it was decided to discontinue production of the Oyster Cosmograph, and the automatic Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph was released shortly thereafter. The Oyster Cosmograph then immediately began to see a sharp rise in price as a vintage model.
I don't know why. All I remember is that just before that, the Oyster Cosmograph was featured in the fashion pages of the Italian magazine L'UOMO VOGUE. I think that this was the catalyst that sparked a global boom that originated in Italy. And what made it especially popular was the unique dial of the Daytona, which was already rare.
Incidentally, when I owned one in the 1980s, the Oyster Cosmograph was so unpopular that new ones were often sold for around 10 yen at discount stores. However, if you went to the Rolex service center in the Marunouchi Transportation Bureau Building, you could exchange it for a dial of your choice for 5 yen (a complete exchange of the dial, hands, and bezel). In other words, you could get a new Daytona with a unique dial for around 15 yen.
