The Ref. 3646 / Type E will be auctioned on 21 November 2021 at Webb’s Fine Jewels, Watches & Luxury Accessories. You can read more about this watch here or go directly to the auctioneer’s website (Lot 423).

Features of the watch:
Reference: 3646 / Type E
Dial: “California Dial”
Case number: 2609XX
Movement: Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 mod.

[Photo with kind permission / courtesy of www.webbs.co.nz]

Interesting read can be found in our book “History2” on page 628-629, too.

Introducing another Ref. 3646 / Type E watch which surfaced in Germany – this specimen appeared with painted brass dial.

Noteworthy is the well preserved original strap and “Bottle Opener” buckle, wich most of today’s surfacing watches don’t have anymore.

The “Kampfschwimmer” watch with anonymous painted brass dial has an unpolished case with a matching flat bezel. The onion shaped winding crown (“BREVET +” Type 11) can be screwed down onto the collar of the 47 mm cushion shaped case with soldered lugs.

Features of the watch:
Reference: 3646 / Type E
Dial: “Kampfschwimmer” (painted brass, anonymous)
Case number: 2608XX
Movement: Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 mod.

Inside the watch is a Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 mod. movement with typical decorations and engravings on the bridges (17 RUBIS / FAB. SUISSE). The blued steel hands appear untouched with original luminous material. The inner caseback is decorated with half polish. An overview of different decorative polish on the inside of the caseback (Type A – Type G) can be found on page 486 in our book “The References” 1930’s-1940’s.

Find more info on straps and buckles here. More info on Ref. 3646 watches without Rolex hallmarks can be found here. More info on Ref. 3646 watches with brass dials can be found here.

Here we added another unknown watch into our database – yet another piece of the puzzle surfaced. Thanks to the collector who shared the photos and information with us!

Webb’s auction house from Auckland / New Zealand contacted us recently, providing information and photos of a yet unknown Ref. 3646 / Type E with “California Dial”. The watch appears with the matching flat bezel and both lead seals above and below the 47 mm cushion shaped case. The outer caseback is not engraved and the inner caseback is missing the Rolex hallmark and reference number, which is a typical feature of Ref. 3646 / Type E watches. The onion shaped winding crown (“BREVET +” Type 11) can be screwed down onto the collar of the 47 mm cushion shaped case with soldered lugs.

The “Error-Proof Radium Dial” by Rolex, with its railroad track minute markers and “SWISS MADE” signature at six o’clock, features half arabic and half roman numbers with luminous material applied from above.

Since 2016, five new watches of the number group Ref. 3646 / Type E surfaced, two of them expanded the number group from 260856 – 261097 (as of 1.1.2016) to 260850 – 260111. We have 31 Ref. 3646 / Type E watches recorded as of today, including this specimen from New Zealand.

Features of the watch:
Reference: 3646 / Type E
Dial: “California Dial”
Case number: 2609XX
Movement: Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 mod.

You can read more about Ref. 3646 watches with dissappeared Rolex hallmarks here.

[Photos with kind permission / courtesy of www.webbs.co.nz]

Sotheby’s will auction a Ref. 3646 / Type E with “California Dial” and Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 mod. movement in their upcoming auction Important Watches in Hong Kong on 8 October, 2019 (lot 2310). The watch is recorded in our database since May 2013.

The “California Dial” is corresponding with the flat bezel of the watch – a typical combination of dial version and bezel (a Panerai dial with its sandwich construction would need a higher bezel due to its height). The “Error-Proof Radium Dial” by Rolex, with its railroad track minute markers and “SWISS MADE” signature at six o’clock, features half arabic and half roman numbers with luminous material applied from above. The onion shaped winding crown (“BREVET +” Type 11) is screwed down onto the collar of the 47 mm cushion shaped case with soldered lugs.

Noteworthy, this watch is one of only three known pieces within the number group Ref. 3646 / Type E which show a Rolex hallmark and reference number on its inner caseback. Usually, known watches of the number group Ref. 3646 / Type E only bear their case number on the inner caseback as typical feature. We have pointed this out in our book “The References” 1930’s-1940’s in chapter II.V (page 537) and II.VI (page 579-581), where this watch is mentioned by its case number several times.

Since 2016, three new watches of the number group Ref. 3646 / Type E surfaced, two of them expanded the number group from 260856 – 261097 (1.1.2016) to 260850 – 260111 (29 watches recorded as of today).

Features of the watch:
Reference: 3646 / Type E
Dial: “California Dial”
Case number: 260918
Movement: Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 mod.

We hope that also this watch will find a good new home and remains surfaced in the Vintage Panerai collectors world. [Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann]

[Photo of the Ref. 3646 / Type E watch courtesy of www.sothebys.com]

Another souvenir from the Second World War in shape of a Ref. 3646 / Type E “Kampfschwimmer” with painted brass dial recently surfaced in the United Kingdom.

Piers Motley Auctions will feature this watch in their September auction. Read more about this interesting new addition to our database in our watch point.

[Photo with kindly permission / courtesy of www.piersmotleyauctions.co.uk]

Piers Motley Auctions (Exmouth / United Kingdom) will auction a Ref. 3646 / Type E “Kampfschwimmer” with painted brass dial in their auction on 17 September, 2018 (Lot 245).

The watch appears in good condition from the photos provided by the auction house. The blued steel hands are completely filled with luminous material, the anonymous brass dial shows no broken off numbers or markers, which we know from other watches with such dials, recorded in our database. The watch comes with the flat version of the bezel, matching to its anonymous, flat dial. Both lead seals are still present. The caseback of the watch bears no individual engraving.

The watch is powered with a matching Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 mod. movement (17 RUBIS FAB. SUISSE instead of ROLEX 17 RUBIS on the left side of the central bridge). The onion shaped winding crown (“BREVET +” Type 11) is screwed down onto the collar of the 47 mm cushion shaped case with soldered lugs. The watch is fitted onto a custom made leather strap with underlay, showing a big portion of patina, too. There are service marks on the inner caseback which could be the reason for the ratchet wheel without sunburst design.

What makes this watch a Ref. 3646 / Type E in our database criteria? As we have pointed out different caseback engravings earlier here, a Ref. 3646 without the Rolex SA hallmark can be only Type E (26XXXX) or Type G (317XXX) from its six digit case number embossed on the inside of the caseback.

This specimen has enlarged the number group of Ref. 3646 / Type E watches from 260850 – 261097 to 260850 – 261111. Twentysix Ref. 3646 / Type E watches were registered in our records as of 1.1.2016, 27 watches since end of 2016 with the Ref. 3646 / Type E “California Dial” auctioned at Phillips, being the only “new” Type E entry in our records until this watch – the 261111 – surfaced and represents the 28th Ref. 3646 / Type E in our records.

Very interesting also (just like the overlap between Ref. 3646 / Type D and Type E watches – read more on page 535-543 in our book “The References” 1930’s-1940’s) that there exist watches of the Ref. 3646 / Type F (again with Rolex SA hallmark embossed in the center of the caseback) which have a lower case number than this Ref. 3646 / Type E.

You can read the press release from Piers Motley Auctions here.

We hope that also this watch will find a good new home and remains surfaced in the Vintage Panerai collectors world. [Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann]

[Photos with kindly permission / courtesy of www.piersmotleyauctions.co.uk]

More than two hundred watches of the Reference 3646 are registered in our database today. Among all different Vintage Panerai models, the 3646 marks the reference with the most known specimen in our records. Nine years ago, in 2009, 143 recorded watches were featured in the first (sold out) edition of our book “The References”. Within the entire serial number sequence of the reference 3646, we differentiate between seven different variations (3646 / Type A – Type G). The photo on the left shows a Ref. 3646 / Type E with “California Dial”, which is featured in chapter II.V (page 544-551).

In our book “The References” 1930’s-1940’s the watches of the entire reference 3646 are featured in chapter II with more than six hundred pages in the chapters II.I-II.VII following an intro on page 40-49. The seven different variations can be found in our reference quickfinder on page 14-20.

Chapter II.I = Reference 3646 / Type A
(featuring two different watches on page 50-169).

Chapter II.II = Reference 3646 / Type B
(featuring four different watches on page 170-247).

Chapter II.III = Reference 3646 / Type C
(featuring seven different watches on page 248-397).

Chapter II.IV = Reference 3646 / Type D
(featuring nine different watches on page 398-531).

Chapter II.V = Reference 3646 / Type E
(featuring four different watches on page 532-573).

Chapter II.VI = Reference 3646 / Type F
(featuring two different watches on page 574-607).

Chapter II.VII = Reference 3646 / Type G
(featuring two different watches on page 608-645).

See the different inner casebacks of Ref. 3646 / Type A – Type C watches here, as well as the inner casebacks of Ref. 3646 / Type D – Type G watches here. Read about the 3646 watches with disappeared hallmarks here.

Two Vintage Panerai watches will be up for auction in the WINNING ICONS auction at Phillips on 26 October 2017 in New York. Inbetween a total of 50 watches in the auction with the subtitle “Legendary Watches of the 20th Century”, Lot 16 is a 3646 / Type E with “California Dial” (photo), followed by Lot 39, a Ref. 6152/1 with 8 mm Rolex crown and “Marina Militare” dial. Find further info on both watches in our Watch Point.

[Photo with kindly permission / courtesy of www.phillips.com]

Why do some Ref. 3646 watches come only with a six digit case number embossed on their inner caseback? Where did the Rolex hallmark and reference number go? In which of the seven different number groups of the Reference 3646 is this the case?

Our book “The References” 1930’s-1940’s answers these questions in two chapters by measurement results and illustrated cross-sections (page 537-551, 638-639 and 644-645). The coffee table shot on the left shows a Ref. 3646 / Type G with a technical illustration on page 618-619 in chapter II.VII.

Chapter II.V = Reference 3646 / Type E
(featuring four different watches on page 532-573).

Chapter II.VII = Reference 3646 / Type G
(featuring two different watches on page 608-645).

“The References” books are in stock and can be ordered in our bookstore. Enjoy reading!

Since we added a Ref. 3646 / Type E “California Dial” into our database in March 2016, the personalized caseback of this watch got our attention, too.

After the watch was auctioned earlier this year in May at Phillips (The Geneva Watch Auction THREE, lot 122, read the note in our watch point here), we continued research on the known personal dates, scratched with a sharp tool onto the caseback of the watch: Name, date of birth and home town of Heinrich Hauenstein.

[Photo with kindly permission / courtesy of www.phillips.com]

Having already a few watches with personalized casebacks recorded in our database, we wanted to find proof about the personalized dates in general and if further information about the history of the first owner of this watch could be found more than 70 years after its use.

Since we exchanged information about Heinrich Hauenstein with his family, we know that he has passed away in 1976 at the age of 55. He was married but had no children. In 1951 he was a founding member of a shooting club in his hometown Solnhofen (Bavaria/Germany).

The family has recently shared a historical photo of Heinrich Hauenstein with us, dated October 1942 on the backside, showing him as a sailor of the German Kriegsmarine / Navy. To put a face behind the name on the caseback, we are pleased to publish here the photo from 1942 aside the auction catalogue from Phillips.

[Historical portrait photo with kindly permission / courtesy of Heinrich Hauenstein’s family]