SOME MIGHT say that the story of a Rolex bearing the name Padellone in fact begins back in the late 1940s. Unofficially, of course, but the nature of modern legends often comes from grains of truth buried in the past. It was Reference 8171, a triple calendar and moonphase watch sold into the early 1950s, that collectors first pinned with the nickname, and it stuck around a lot longer than the watch itself did.

Fast forward to today, and Rolex has announced the release of their newest Moonphase, the Perpetual Padellone. Officially.

It’s the second model to join the Perpetual collection since the 1908 launched it in 2023, and it borrows its predecessor’s domed and fluted bezel, wrapped around a 39mm case. The dial keeps a grained finish at its centre and a fine satin finish around the edge, day and month spelled out in full in twin apertures at 12 o’clock, and a blued hand tipped with a crescent moon sweeping the date around the edge.

Then there’s the moonphase detail. Two meteorite discs, one coated in a dark blue PVD finish for the new moon, sit on a blue enamel disc that turns once every 29.53 days, the two sliding past each other tMeet the Perpetual Padellone, Rolex’s Newest Moonphaseo trace out the gap between one new moon and the next. Each disc carries a small, pad-printed face, the detail that started the whole naming business, one Rolex has now made official, on purpose.

Under the case back sits calibre 7190, an evolution of the 7135 that debuted last year in the Land-Dweller. Same Dynapulse escapement, same silicon Syloxi hairspring, same 5 hertz beat rate. What’s new is the Haplos system, a patented mechanism that tells the watch whether it’s looking at a 30-day month or a 31-day one, using only two extra components. The upshot is a calendar that needs correcting once a year, when February hands over to March, and a day, date and month display that jumps together at midnight in under a second. Four correctors set into the sides of the case let each indication be adjusted independently, using a correction stylus.

Three versions are on offer. The lead model comes in 18ct Everose gold with an intense white dial on the new Settimo bracelet, first seen last year on the Perpetual 1908. There’s a platinum version with an ice-blue dial on a matt black alligator strap, and a second Everose option in brown alligator. All three carry Superlative Chronometer certification, which added three new tests this year for magnetism resistance, reliability and sustainability, on top of standards set in 2015.

Which leaves the moon discs tracing out 29.53 days at a time under the sapphire, waiting for the next new moon to line up with the little painted face.

Pricing for the Perpetulal Padellone starts at $98,700 for the Everose gold on leather; $110,900 for the platinum and leather and $121,800 for the Everose gold.

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