Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Rolex · Air-King
Rolex Air-King 41 mm Blue Sapphire
Reference 49403OR.87
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Rolex
- Collection
- Air-King
- Model
- Rolex Air-King 41 mm Blue Sapphire
- Reference number
- 49403OR.87
- Year / era
- 1969 · 1960s — pre-quartz mechanical era
- Complication
- Chronograph
- Movement
- In-house manual-winding
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Dial type
- Blue "Grande Tapisserie"
- Strap / bracelet
- Rubber strap with titanium clasp
- Water resistance
- 50 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 41 mm
- Case thickness
- 8.1 mm
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Bezel
- Smooth polished
- Crystal
- Sapphire with internal AR treatment
- Dial
- Blue "Grande Tapisserie"
- Hands
- Faceted dauphine hands, polished by hand
- Indexes
- Applied faceted white-gold indexes
- Bracelet / strap
- Rubber strap with titanium clasp
- Clasp / buckle
- Triple-folding clasp with safety catch
- Water resistance
- 50 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 76F — In-house manual-winding
- Movement type
- Manual-winding
- Frequency
- 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 5 days
- Number of jewels
- 21 jewels
- Complications
- Chronograph
- Functions
- Hours, minutes, seconds, date
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1969 – 1973
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Trades close to retail on the secondary market, with steady demand for full-set examples.
Designer
Marc Newson
Marc Newson is an Australian industrial designer whose work spans Qantas cabins, Apple hardware and Jaeger-LeCoultre's Atmos clocks; his watch design reduces the object to pure geometry and legibility.
Historical significance
Rolex Air-King 41 mm Blue Sapphire sits within Rolex's Air-King line, introduced in 1969. It carries the house codes established since 1905 — sapphire crystal case case, blue "grande tapisserie" dial and in-house manual-winding — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
The House
Rolex
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1905
- Founder
- Hans Wilsdorf
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Luxury
- Major collections
- Submariner, Daytona, GMT-Master II, Datejust, Day-Date, Yacht-Master, Sky-Dweller, Explorer, Oyster Perpetual, Sea-Dweller, Air-King, 1908, Milgauss
- Signature technologies
- Proprietary case-hardening and polishing · Composite and ceramic case materials
- Famous movements
- In-house automatic, chronometer certified · In-house automatic chronograph · In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer · In-house manual-winding
- Notable watches
- Rolex Submariner 44 mm Skeletonised Platinum (1978) · Rolex Submariner 36 mm Ice 18k (1981) · Rolex Submariner 42 mm Meteorite Quartz (1982) · Rolex Submariner 38 mm Silvered 18k (1989)
Brand history
Rolex has spent more than 121 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Submariner, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Hans Wilsdorf established Rolex in 1905, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Rolex calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1905
Hans Wilsdorf founds Rolex in Switzerland.
1969
The quartz era forces Rolex to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Rolex enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Rolex continues to produce Submariner, Daytona, GMT-Master II and other icons in limited numbers.