76.. Rolex. An interesting historical and rare half hunting case 9K gold manual wind watch with enamelled dial Date: Circa WW1 Movement: 15-jewel manual wind, stamped W&D for Wilsdorf & Davis Dial: White enamelled, black Arabic numeral hour markers, red 12, black outer minute track, sunken subsidiary dial at 6 for running seconds, blued steel spade hands Case: Brushed and polished round, snap on back, half hunting front with minute track and Arabic numerals, Wilsdorf & Davis hallmarks, No.156029 Signed: Case, dial & movement Size: 34mm Weight: 30,01g An evocative witness to the earliest days of Rolex, this rare 9K yellow gold half-hunting case watch dates to the years of the First World War, a period when the wristwatch was only just beginning to supplant the pocket watch. Its clever semi-opened cover, revealing the dial beneath, blends utility with elegance, reflecting the transitional design language of the time. Of particular importance are the "W&D" hallmarks for Wilsdorf & Davis, the original partnership of Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis in London. Before the Rolex name had become synonymous with precision and prestige, Wilsdorf & Davis were importing fine Swiss movements and casing them in gold and silver for the discerning British market. These early creations laid the foundation for Rolex's rise, embodying Wilsdorf's visionary belief that the wristwatch would one day eclipse the pocket watch in both accuracy and desirability. Few such pieces survive today, and even fewer retain the hallmarks that link them directly to the company's founding chapter. Compact, elegant, and historically significant, this watch is more than a timekeeper: it is a tangible fragment of Rolex's origin story, a rare opportunity to own a jewel from the era when Wilsdorf & Davis first set in motion the ideas that would transform modern horology.