blomman Mr Blue
38586
Hard to tell...
Since not many brands have that similar watches as Rolex, year passing.
If you're not an expert, I guess it is hard to tell them apart...
I think we can not always expect correct photos in ads and catalogs due to many reasons.
Especially if it is a very short series with small detail changes.
Sorry for rambling - in short, NO.
But, what I have seen (and still see today) is prototypes used for ads/catalogs and later when the final watch is released, it looks differently.
One extreme example is the JLC/LC Barracuda.
Here in the 1969 LeCoultre catalog - prototype.
And here in the 1970 Jaeger-LeCoultre catalog - final watch.
As you may notice, the prototype only have one crown in the wrong position, missing the crown to operate the inner bezel... 
Best
Blomman
Rolex Vintage: Advertising Models and Dates - Questions
We are always obsessing about validating the dates of vintage Rolex. There are several ways of validating the date of your vintage Rolex but the biggest discrepancy always occurs when you have validated date of sale. That is to say we can reliably use a c...
Wonderful scans, Bill ! :)
You know my love for these old documents. One problem I have encountered is that the brands often used the same photos/pictures over several years. Especially the "mood" pics. For example, the PAN AM picture I have in an ad from 1960. And the Officer, I h...
I agree on the mood photos.
It seems reasonable to use mood shots to creat emotional attachment but seems rather last to show models that are not current or is the reality that they are current models for sale even though they are several year old models. Have you seen the same with...
Hard to tell...
Since not many brands have that similar watches as Rolex, year passing. If you're not an expert, I guess it is hard to tell them apart... I think we can not always expect correct photos in ads and catalogs due to many reasons. Especially if it is a very s...
Hahaha
I like how it is the Admiral that has on the dive watch! He's not the one getting wet! What's up with that?? I like the other advertisements more that showed the actual watch on the wrist of the actual diver. I agree that advertising adds yet another curv...
Very interesting, Bill.
And you have a point here. To me, the best way to date a Watch is to compare its serial number to the date reported Inside the case back. Then, I compare those informations with my data bank, and I see if it is coherent or no. Best, Nicolas.
But we can't ignore the date of sale.
How can we validate when 90 % of the watches have no date of sale. For me it is serial and case back plus chronometer cert. There is no exact science. Best Bill
But the date of sale could be many years after...
For example, I think the record is kept by a 1019 Milgauss sold 15 years after its fabrication! For me, the date of sale has no incidence, to check the ocherence of a Watch. SN + Quartal + Year + the chronometry certificate... Best, my friend. Nicolas
I guess that Rolex marketing was too lazy at this period to change the inside catalog.
Despite the fact that their references changed from year to year.... Best, Nicolas