The Record Ledger · updated July 2026 · 69 documented results
The 10 Most Expensive Rolex Watches Ever Sold
The most expensive Rolex watch ever documented by MostExpensiveWatches is the Rolex Daytona 'Paul Newman' ref. 6239, which realized $17,752,500 at Phillips New York in 2017 — the top of 69 documented results totaling $114,340,562.
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1
Rolex Daytona 'Paul Newman'
$17,752,500 · 2017 · Phillips New York
Paul Newman's personal Daytona, gifted by his wife Joanne Woodward in the late 1960s. Caseback inscribed 'DRIVE CAREFULLY ME'. The watch that defined the exotic-dial Daytona category.
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2
Rolex Cosmograph Daytona "The Unicorn"
$5,936,906 · 2018 · Phillips Geneva
The only known vintage white gold manual-winding Daytona ever produced, donated by collector John Goldberger to benefit the Children Action charity.
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3
Rolex Cosmograph Daytona "Big Red"
$5,475,000 · 2020 · Phillips New York
Paul Newman's personal 'Big Red' Daytona, gifted by his wife and worn by the actor for over two decades.
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4
Rolex Daytona 'Big Red' (John Mayer's)
$5,400,000 · 2024 · Phillips New York
Featured in John Mayer's 'Talking Watches' episode. Black dial 6263 'Big Red' Daytona — one of the most photographed vintage Daytonas in the modern era.
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5
Rolex Cosmograph Daytona "The King"
$5,230,100 · 2025 · Sotheby's Hong Kong
Commissioned by Sultan Qaboos of Oman, this is one of only eight known examples, featuring a baguette-cut diamond bezel and a pavé-set diamond dial with sapphire hour markers.
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6
Rolex Triple-Calendar Moonphase 'Bao Dai'
$5,066,000 · 2017 · Phillips Geneva
Owned by Emperor Bao Dai of Vietnam. Only known 6062 with black dial + diamond markers. One of three diamond-set 6062s known to exist.
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7
Rolex Daytona 'The Legend'
$3,726,000 · 2017 · Phillips Geneva
One of only three known yellow gold 6263 Daytonas with a 'Paul Newman' lemon dial and screw-down pushers. This lot set a world record for the reference at the time of sale due to its extreme rarity and exceptional condition.
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8
Rolex Daytona 'RCO' Paul Newman Oysterquartz Concept Outdated
$3,724,000 · 2018 · Phillips Geneva
Exotic-dial 6263 with 'RCO' configuration (Rosso Corsa Outline). From John Goldberger collection.
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9
Rolex Cosmograph Daytona
$3,100,000 · 2021 · Sotheby's Hong Kong
A unique platinum Daytona featuring a turquoise lacquered "Stella" dial, powered by the Zenith-based caliber 4030 and manufactured circa 1998.
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10
Rolex Cosmograph Daytona "The Neanderthal"
$3,012,422 · 2018 · Phillips Geneva
A unique transitional reference featuring oversized white subdials and Art Deco numerals, predating the standard Paul Newman dial configuration.
How the record was set
Every documented result that beat all before it.
| Year | New record | Watch |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | $864,521 | Rolex Cosmograph Daytona "Sultan Qaboos" · Christie's Geneva |
| 2013 | $1,089,186 | Rolex Cosmograph Daytona "RCO" Paul Newman · Christie's Geneva |
| 2013 | $1,145,000 | Rolex Triple Calendar "Padellone" · Christie's New York |
| 2015 | $1,418,000 | Rolex Cosmograph Daytona "Albino" · Phillips Geneva |
| 2016 | $2,466,793 | Rolex Split-Seconds Chronograph · Phillips Geneva |
| 2017 | $3,726,000 | Rolex Daytona 'The Legend' · Phillips Geneva |
| 2017 | $5,066,000 | Rolex Triple-Calendar Moonphase 'Bao Dai' · Phillips Geneva |
| 2017 | $17,752,500 | Rolex Daytona 'Paul Newman' · Phillips New York |
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Cite this record
Every figure above is a documented hammer price with a primary source on its lot page. Cite as “MostExpensiveWatches Record Ledger”, e.g.:
“The most expensive Rolex watch ever documented by MostExpensiveWatches is the Rolex Daytona 'Paul Newman' ref. 6239, which realized $17,752,500 at Phillips New York in 2017 — the top of 69 documented results totaling $114,340,562.” — MostExpensiveWatches, July 2026. https://mostexpensivewatches.net/most-expensive/rolex
Machine-readable: /data/records.json · See also the Grail Index and the daily Price Index.