When the replica rolex cellini collection will never have the same mass appeal or cool cachet as their ever popular steel sports models, i have to say this nice and refined collection is just as significant and emblematic to the big crown. while they upgraded the line in 2014, i was quite taken interesting dial textures with their fluted bezels, and small complications, the cellinis talked to a mid century tradition of elegance that seemed almost directly opposed to the steel sports cheap replica watches for which the brand is so famous.
the replica rolex has added another complication to the family three years later, and that is just the cellini moonphase. well, please forgive me while i search the dark web for places to offload an excess kidney, because the cellini moonphase, while it may not be a carbon copy of the 8171, is possibly as close we’re going to get from a modern rolex. on face value alone, the cellini moonphase is a real classical beauty, perfectly proportioned at 39mm and looking luxurious in everose.
the blue enamel disc at six is dotted with tiny stars and an outline standing for the new moon. but the eye is drawn to the applied moon itself immediately crafted from a tiny fragment of meteorite, it’s a detail that absolutely rewards close inspection. the double gold gilt ring surrounding the moonphase and tiny triangle at the top of the subdial indicating the current phase of the moon both evoke the glorious dial designs that are so outstanding in rolex’s rich heritage.
the white lacquer dial is surprisingly detailed, with a peripheral date (indicated by the crescent tipped hand) and a second scale that bisects the applied hour markers. and then there’s the titular complication itself. even though, it’s just the fact that this is a rolex moonphase which is really exciting. it’s the first time in nearly 70 years that they’ve tried their hand at the complication.
the cellini moonphase received a fraction of the attention lauded upon the new sea dweller, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. and while these two models are poles apart aesthetically, for me they represent two sides of the same coin. both watches tell an important story about fake rolex‘s history one looks to the deep, while the other gazes up into the sky.