Consigned by the original owner and appearing for the first time at auction, the present chronograph is distinguished by the very well preserved unrestored dial with the highly desirable red "Cherry Logo" Daytona signature, beautifully contrasting with the black matte background.

The full case has not been subject to careless polishing, the bezel with tachymetre scale calibrated to 200 units per hour is the correct version. The overall appeal of this ref. 6239 is further enhanced by the very well preserved expanding riveted Rolex Oyster bracelet dating from 1968.

Reference 6239, the very first model of the celebrated "Daytona" series, succeeded reference 6238 and could be found in sales catalogues in Europe as of 1964. It is thought though that the model was available in the US already in 1963. Produced in stainless steel, 14K and 18K gold, reference 6239 was the firm's first chronograph with the tachometre scale engraved on the bezel and the subsidiary dials printed in a different color than the main dial for better readability. The dials of the early models featured only the designation "Cosmograph", referring to the outer space travels of the early 60s. The "Daytona" was added on later series watches such as the present watch to mark Rolex's sponsorship of the renowned NASCAR stock car race.

For detailed descriptions and illustrations of the dial and bezel variations of reference 6239 see Rolex Daytona - a legend is born by Carlo Pergola, Stefano Mazzariol, Giovanni Dosso, pp. 44 - 61. The case shapes are illustrated and explained on page 60.

Different versions of reference 6239 regarding case material and dial layout are furthermore described and illustrated in I Cronografi Rolex - La Leggenda, Pucci Papaleo Editore, pp. 296-303.