The Rolex Datejust
While there are, of course, the usual traditions involved with Thanksgiving, each family has their own individual ways to celebrate. For some it centers around over-indulgence in all things. For others, it may involve volunteering at the local food bank or VA center. Others simply use it as a warmup to the Black Friday sales the following day. The key is versatility.
One watch that adapts perfectly to literally every situation is Rolex’s signature everyman creation, the Datejust.
In continuous production now for exactly 80-years, the DJ has been the crown’s bestseller for almost that entire time, with fans flocking to the model for one reason; an almost unlimited amount of adaptability. At its most basic, the Datejust is an extremely simple and fuss-free piece. However, Rolex made the decision to use that as merely a foundation onto which customers could infuse their own specific personality with a practically boundless list of options.
As well as a total of five different sizes, ranging from the 28mm Lady-Datejust up to the largest 41mm example, each one comes with an extensive selection of possible case materials, bracelet styles, bezel types and a bewildering assortment of dials.
With the current crop, along with eight decades of past glories, there is a version out there to satisfy everybody’s tastes and at a price low enough to be surprising.
As Rolex has never limited the supply of the Datejust to their retail network, there are a huge amount of models on the preowned market, their sheer number keeping prices down nicely. And, just as with the GMT-Master above, it is a watch that has stayed stylistically consistent since the 1950s.
As such, vintage Datejusts are often a gateway into Rolex ownership, coming in at the sort of money you might pay for a decent Casio G-Shock!
One of the all-time classics of watch design, the Datejust is the timepiece which can do it all.
