Datejust 31 Rolesor Yellow Fluted / Oyster / Champagne

About This Watch

The Rolex Datejust 31, in its Rolesor iteration of yellow gold and stainless steel, embodies the quiet authority of a timepiece that has defined elegance for generations. The champagne dial, with its warm, sunlit hue, is framed by a fluted bezel—a hallmark of the Datejust collection since its introduction in 1945—that adds a tactile and visual layer of refinement. Stick indexes and hands, paired with a subtle date window at 3 o’clock, ensure legibility without distraction, a balance that underscores the collection’s enduring appeal as a symbol of understated sophistication. The case, combining yellow gold’s lustrous warmth with the resilience of stainless steel, reflects Rolex’s mastery of materials and craftsmanship, while the sapphire crystal and water resistance to 100 meters affirm its practicality without compromising its status as a luxury object. At its heart lies the Caliber 2235, an automatic movement with a Parachrom balance spring that ensures precision and reliability, hallmarks of Rolex’s engineering legacy. The watch’s proportions—31mm in diameter, with a lug width of 16mm—strike a modern equilibrium between tradition and contemporary wearability, making it a versatile companion for both formal and semiformal occasions. The closed case back, though unadorned, speaks to the brand’s commitment to discretion and quality. This watch is for the discerning individual who values heritage, craftsmanship, and subtlety. It suits those who seek a timepiece that transcends trends, offering a quiet assertion of identity through its enduring design and the quiet confidence of a name that needs no embellishment.

In Context

At 31 mm it is small by current standards, in the range most wristwatches occupied before cases began growing through the 1990s. The case back is closed, so the movement stays out of sight, and the sapphire crystal will resist everything short of deliberate abuse. 100 m is genuine swimming resistance — more than the shape of this watch suggests it would need.

The movement winds itself from the motion of your wrist. 48 hours of reserve is enough to set it down on Friday evening and find it still running on Monday. At 28,800 vph the seconds hand advances 8 times a second.

178273-0009 is one of 32 executions of the 178273 base reference. Underneath they are the same watch; what separates this one is a champagne dial and a yellow gold, stainless steel case.

Rolex

Champagne · Yellow Gold, Stainless Steel

178273-0001 · 31 mm

Rolex

Champagne · Yellow Gold, Stainless Steel

178273-0002 · 31 mm

Rolex

Silver · Yellow Gold, Stainless Steel

178273-0006 · 31 mm

Rolex

Silver · Yellow Gold, Stainless Steel

178273-0010 · 31 mm

Rolex

Silver · Yellow Gold, Stainless Steel

178273-0011 · 31 mm

Rolex

Champagne · Yellow Gold, Stainless Steel

178273-0013 · 31 mm

Rolex

Silver · Yellow Gold, Stainless Steel

178273-0015 · 31 mm

Rolex

White

178273-0016 · 31 mm

+ 23 more variants in this family.

The 2235 is the small Rolex automatic of the six-digit generation, a 20 mm movement with a date. It carried the Datejust 31 and the 26 mm Lady-Datejust from around 2000 until the 2236 replaced it. It powers 733 watches in this library. It has 31 jewels, a 48-hour reserve and a beat of 28,800 vph, and every one is a COSC chronometer. It is the same architecture as the [2236](/calibers/rolex-2236) that followed, without the silicon Syloxi hairspring and with seven hours less reserve; the [2236 piece](/blog/the-rolex-2236-the-most-common-movement-in-this-library) explains what changed. The library finds it almost entirely in the [Datejust 31](/brands/rolex/datejust-31): 682 references, the 1782xx generation, whose 45 base references and hundreds of dial variants make that collection the largest here. The 26 mm [Lady-Datejust](/brands/rolex/lady-datejust) of the 1791xx generation accounts for 29, the [Pearlmaster](/brands/rolex/pearlmaster) 29 mm and 34 mm for 19, and the 35 mm Yacht-Master for 3. A six-digit Datejust 31 reference is a 2235; the seven-digit one is a 2236, as the [reference-number guide](/blog/how-to-read-a-watch-reference-number) explains. The 2231 was its no-date sibling in the Oyster Perpetual, and the [3135](/calibers/rolex-3135) its counterpart in the 36 mm cases.

732 other watches in the library run the Rolex 2235.

Rolex

Datejust 31 Yellow Gold Diamond / Oyster / Black MOP

178158-0056 · 31 mm

Rolex

Datejust 31 Stainless Steel Diamond / Oyster / Pink MOP

178384-0061 · 31 mm

Rolex

Datejust 31 Rolesor Everose Domed / Jubilee / Black MOP

178241-0043 · 31 mm

Rolex

Datejust 31 Yellow Gold Domed / Oyster / Champagne Roman

178248-0079 · 31 mm