{"product_id":"rolex-explorer-as01529","title":"Rolex Explorer","description":"\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe summit of Everest and the bottom of the Mariana Trench. Only Rolex has sent watches to the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ethe highest altitudes and lowest depths on \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ethe planet, and from these exploits they have created some of the most technically reliable watches ever produced.  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEdmund Hillary and Tenzig Norgay began their final ascent of Everest on May 29, 1953, reaching the summit, 29,028 feet above sea level.  They checked the Rolexes on their wrists and marked the time: 11:30 a.m. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe know that the watch on Hillary’s wrist was a Rolex Oyster Precision (see it \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.hodinkee.com\/blog\/found-the-rolex-sir-edmund-hillary-wore-to-the-peak-of-mount-everest-live-pics-details\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eHERE\u003c\/a\u003e), but we’re not sure which dial was on Norgay’s Precision. The Oyster Precision was the precursor to the Explorer, and it was the Precision that introduced the 3-6-9 black Arabic dial that we all associate with the Explorer today. The facts may have been lost to history, but one member of the Everest expedition, if not Norgay himself, likely had a proto-Explorer on his wrist, and the 3-6-9-dialed Precision is the watch that Rolex chose to rechristen as the Explorer in honor of Hillary and Norgay’s historic accomplishment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProduction on what would become the Explorer began in the early 1950s. \u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eSince this watch would be used in low-light, the hour markers--with the 3, 6, 9 Arabic numerals that appeared in bubble-back Rolex Precision models--had to be highly legible, with tritium indices\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003ePrototypes were given to explorers in late 1952--including mountaineers Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, who wore a Rolex to the summit of Everest. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Explorer Ref. 1016 first saw production in 1963, and is to many the quintessential reference of this model. Its design language is timeless, still seen on Explorers to this day. The robust stainless steel case with screw-down crown is compact, the matte dial (gloss in earlier versions of this reference) with its signature 3, 6, 9 Arabic numerals spartan and easy to read, an exercise in legibility and balance. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRolex went on to produce the Explorer until 1989, but as is the case with most Rolex sports models, the earliest versions of the watch tend to be the best-looking. The triumph of the 1953 expedition and spirit of adventure and exploration that Explorer represents can be felt when this watch is strapped to your wrist. It is a memento of man’s ability to conquer the world through hard work, grit and determination (and a great deal of panache).\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rolex","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":19446687809,"sku":null,"price":10500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0809\/1255\/products\/Rolex_Explorer_1016_AS01529_1.jpg?v=1463606529","url":"https:\/\/www.analogshift.com\/products\/rolex-explorer-as01529","provider":"Analog:Shift","version":"1.0","type":"link"}