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Rolex · Family: Day-Date
The Rolex Day-Date 40 (ref. 228238) is the 40mm yellow-gold execution of Rolex's flagship dress watch, cased entirely in 18kt gold with a matching fluted bezel and President bracelet. It runs the in-house Calibre 3255 — Chronergy escapement, ~70-hour power reserve, Superlative Chronometer certified. Cazador has zero verified price observations today. Its differential: Day-Date is the only Rolex family made exclusively in precious metals, never steel, and spells the day of the week out in full through a window at 12 o'clock.
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The Rolex Day-Date occupies a category of its own within the brand's catalog: since its debut in 1956 [widely known historical context; not drawn from the current-catalog spec source used for this fiche] it has been the only Rolex family made exclusively in precious metal — yellow, white, or Everose gold, or platinum — never steel. That material exclusivity, paired with the presidential-seal crown emblem, is central to its identity as Rolex's dress-representation watch.
Reference 228238 belongs to the Day-Date 40 generation, which grew the case diameter to 40mm from the historic 36mm of the classic Day-Date. That generation arrived alongside a movement change: the Calibre 3255, an in-house Rolex movement built around the Chronergy escapement for improved energy efficiency and greater resistance to shocks and magnetic fields. The result is roughly 70 hours of power reserve, with Superlative Chronometer certification — Rolex's own standard, which tests the fully cased movement rather than the bare movement alone.
The case on this reference is cased entirely in 18kt yellow gold, including the fluted bezel, one of the most recognizable finishes in Rolex's catalog. The sapphire crystal carries the Cyclops lens over the date window at 3 o'clock, while 12 o'clock holds the window that sets Day-Date apart from every other Rolex line: the day of the week spelled out in full, not abbreviated, available in different languages depending on the destination market.
The bracelet is the President, built from three semi-circular links, also cased in 18kt yellow gold and closed with the concealed Crownclasp system. The dial on this reference is offered in multiple color variants depending on sales configuration; the catalog input reviewed does not fix a single dial color for the 228238.
Rated to 100 meters of water resistance, the Day-Date is not built for sport or diving but for daily wear in formal settings as a high-end dress watch. Per the catalog data used for this fiche, reference 228238 remains in active production. Cazador does not have a verified launch year for this exact yellow-gold combination within the Day-Date 40 generation and avoids stating a specific date without documentary support.
Cazador has no verified PricePoint observations for the 228238, so we cannot publish a reliable market range. This section will update once enough verified data is collected.
Since its introduction, Day-Date has been the only Rolex family reserved exclusively for precious metals — yellow, white, Everose gold, or platinum — never steel, reinforcing its role as Rolex's dress-representation watch.
Day-Date adds a window spelling the day of the week out in full at 12 o'clock, in addition to the date, and is cased only in gold or platinum. Datejust shows only the date and is also available in Oystersteel.
It runs Rolex's in-house Calibre 3255, an automatic movement with the Chronergy escapement, roughly 70 hours of power reserve, and Superlative Chronometer certification.
It's the three-semi-circular-link bracelet historically associated with the Day-Date, cased on this reference entirely in 18kt yellow gold with a concealed Crownclasp.
It's rated to 100 meters, sufficient for daily wear, rain, and splashes, though it isn't built as a sport or dive watch.
Per the catalog data used for this fiche, the reference remains in active production. Cazador does not have a verified launch year for this exact combination.