Rolex unveils the Perpetual Padellone, its second-ever annual calendar

Rolex has unveiled the Perpetual Padellone, a new instantaneous annual calendar with moonphase named directly after the collector nickname for its vintage predecessor, the ref. 8171. Launched in Milan rather than at Watches & Wonders, it arrives in 18k Everose gold or 950 platinum, priced from $59,000 on a strap.

The ref. 8171 earned its nickname, Italian for large frying pan, from its wide 38mm flat case and domed dial. Rolex, the brand we consider the gold standard of watchmaking, cites that reference explicitly as the new watch's inspiration, along with its waterproof successor, the ref. 6062, and a Cellini moonphase design.

The new case measures 39mm by 12.2mm by 45.1mm, just 1mm wider and slightly thinner than the original from the early 1950s. Unlike its ancestor, which had no water resistance at all, the Perpetual Padellone is rated to 50 meters, standard for the wider Perpetual collection launched three years ago with the 1908.

Four caseband correctors, operated with an included stylus, set the day, date, month and moonphase, matching the original 8171 layout. Where that watch needed monthly correction as a simple triple calendar, the new movement changes day, date and month instantaneously at midnight and needs adjusting only once a year, at the February to March changeover.

Pricing runs from $59,000 for Everose gold on an alligator strap to $66,300 for platinum on strap, with the top Everose reference on the brand's Settimo bracelet priced at $72,800. The platinum version is offered only on strap and carries the brand's signature ice blue dial, while the gold models show a grained white dial.

What powers the new calendar

The Perpetual Padellone runs on the new caliber 7190, an evolution of caliber 7135 and its Dynapulse escapement, first launched with the Land-Dweller in 2025. Dynapulse delivers impulse directly from the escape wheel to the balance, skipping the traditional pallet fork and cutting friction along the way.

Rolex puts the Dynapulse escapement at 13 to 15% more efficient than its existing Chronergy design, itself claimed to be 15% more efficient than a standard Swiss lever, for a combined gain of roughly 30%. The system relies on silicon parts, including a hollowed intermediary wheel, made using deep reactive-ion etching at industrial scale.

The calendar mechanism is protected by European patent EP4632499A1, filed by Rolex SA on August 9, 2025 and published October 15 of that year, crediting inventors Valentine Pennestri and Denis Rudaz for an instant jump time calendar system. Rolex calls the once-a-year correction design its patented Haplos system.

How the dial reads the calendar

Day and month appear in apertures below 12 o'clock, while the date is shown by a blue hand tipped with a crescent moon. The moonphase, at 6 o'clock, uses a fully visible enamel disc rather than the 8171's half-aperture, with full and new moon rendered in meteorite, the latter treated with dark blue PVD.

The fluted bezel and tapered fluted crown echo the 1908, while the case is polished everywhere but the bezel itself. Arabic numerals at 3 and 9 o'clock, shared with the 1908, replace the 8171's stick indices and nod instead to the 6062's dial, which Rolex also cites as an influence.

A calendar built on 70 years of history

This is only Rolex's second annual calendar after the Sky-Dweller, and 2026 marks 30 years since Patek Philippe introduced the annual calendar complication in 1996. Rolex's own calendar lineage runs from the 1945 Datejust through the 1947 Dato-Compax to the short-lived 8171 of 1949 and the 6062, both discontinued by 1953.

A 6062 in steel sold for $6.2 million at Monaco Legend Auctions in 2025, underlining how collectible the lineage has become. The 2017 Cellini moonphase ref. 50535, the last Rolex moonphase before this one, ended a 64-year gap since the 6062's discontinuation.

We rank Rolex above Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet at the top of our guide to the best luxury watch brands, citing its build quality, value retention and instant recognition as unmatched in the category. The Perpetual Padellone extends that reputation into a genuine complication rather than the sports models the brand is best known for.

Our coverage of watches jewelry is focused on Rolex's steel sports references, including alternatives to the Explorer and Submariner for buyers unwilling to wait on waitlists. The Perpetual Padellone sits outside that conversation entirely, aimed instead at collectors chasing complications rather than tool-watch value.

Rolex has not said how allocation will work, but the 1908 collection it now sits alongside rolled out slowly through authorized dealers after its own launch. Buyers hoping to see the Perpetual Padellone in person should expect a similarly gradual rollout rather than immediate broad availability.