Rolex Know-How
Rolex Certificate Code
Some certificates have a red stamp made of letters on the back. It tells you the day the watch was shipped to its US dealer.
What the red stamp means
Some certificates carry a red stamp on the back that consists of letters only. It shows the watch came from the US, because the stamp was used only there. So what's the mystery code all about?
The key
The solution is as clever as it is simple. The letters stand for numbers, and the numbers add up to the date the watch left the Rolex factory and was shipped to the dealer. The key is the phrase ROLEX WATCH:
| Letter | R | O | L | E | X | W | A | T | C | H |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digit | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 0 |
The code has six positions: month, day and year, two digits each. If the month or the day has only one digit, one position stays blank: for the month the gap comes after the digit, for the day before it. In the decoder you enter the blank as a space, exactly as it appears on the stamp, for example C OWCE for September 26 or RO XCH for December 5. That makes the date unambiguous. Without a space, the decoder shows both possibilities.
Three examples
If the certificate says X R C T L, it translates like this:
| M | M | T | T | J | J |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| X | R | C | T | L | |
| 5 | 1 | 9 | 8 | 3 |
That's May 19, 1983. On that day the watch went from Rolex to the dealer in the US.
The example on the certificate above means the watch was shipped to the US on 09/26/1994:
| M | M | T | T | J | J |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | O | W | C | E | |
| 9 | 2 | 6 | 9 | 4 |
And this code stands for December 5, 1990:
| M | M | T | T | J | J |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | O | X | C | H | |
| 1 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 0 |
Frequently asked questions
What does the red letter stamp on the certificate mean?
It gives the date the watch left the Rolex factory and went to the dealer in the US. The stamp was used only in the US.
How do I decode it?
Every letter in ROLEX WATCH stands for a digit: R for 1, O for 2, L for 3, all the way to H for 0. The code has six positions for month, day and year. The decoder at the top of the page does the work for you.
Why is there a gap in the stamp?
If the month or the day has just one digit, one position stays blank. For the month the gap comes after the digit, for the day before it.
Is the code on German certificates too?
No, it was only used in the US. A red letter code tells you the watch must have come from the US.