Tudor ref 7962 from 1964

Some history from the Internet. Just after the second world war, Hans Wilsdorf, Founder of Rolex, knew that the time had come to expand and give the Tudor brand a true identity of its own. Thus, on 6 March 1946, he created the “Montres TUDOR S.A.” company, specialising in models for men and women. Rolex guaranteed the technical, aesthetic, and functional characteristics, along with the distribution and after-sales service. 

In 1947 Tudor introduced the Oyster, their first waterproof watch, building on the success of the Rolex Oyster of the same period. In 1952, 26 Tudor Oyster Prince watches were included in the British scientific expedition to Greenland organised by the Royal Navy and sponsored by The Queen. This showed the world how robust Tudor Oyster watches were.

Here we have a 1960s Tudor Oysterdate Big Rose 7962 with a 34.5mm stainless steel Oyster case produced by Rolex. A lug to lug length of 41mm and a thickness of 8.5mm ensures a comfortable fit on your wrist. A signed screwed-down crown with the Rolex crown on the right side—polished and brushed surfaces transition with crisp edges. 

The slim polished bezel holds a domed crystal above a silver dial. Applied bullet-shaped indexes mark the hours. At 3 o’clock, a framed date window with cyclops magnification on the crystal. Elegant dauphine hands are complemented by a tapered sweeping seconds hand. At 12 o’clock, we have the applied Tudor Big Rose with Tudor Oysterdate printed underneath. On the reverse, a coin-edged screw-down case back. Inside a Manually Wound ETA 2403. 

These Tudor Oyster watches from the late 1950s and 1960s feature small and large flowers on the dial are not difficult to find. This watch is from 1964 with serial nos 4468XX. The challenge of course is to find it in excellent conditions. It comes in two versions: with calendar date and without. 

The large flower was later replaced by the famous shield symbol that many of us are familiar with today. This Tudor Reference 7962 Tudor Oyster dates back to the 1960s and measures 34mm, which is perfect for slender Asian wrists.  It features the same authentic Oyster case design as its Rolex contemporaries, but features a hand-wound 17 Jewel movement with date function.  Satin-finish silver dial with polished dart markers and dauphine hands.  Specially adorning this beautiful watch are the 12 rare and lovely “Big Flower” Tudor emblems, a stunning and intricate applied element that was actually reduced in size in subsequent models.