Rolex GMT Master*** 16750 Transitional*** 1983

Rolex GMT Master*** 16750 Matte*** 1983

OUR ARCHIVE » Rolex GMT Master*** 16750 Matte*** 1983

ROLEX Vintage GMT Master ‘Pepsi’ Bezel Ref. 16750, rare matte dial transitional model, 1983
Serial: 8197300
Circa: 1983
Reference No.: 16750

DIAL: Black matte dial with beveled date aperture at 3 o’clock, untouched. Mercedes hour and pencil minutes hand, lollipop seconds and red color GMT hand indicating the second time zone.

CASE: 40mm, stainless steel with red and blue rotating bezel and acrylic glass with loupe for date at 3 o’clock.

MOVEMENT: Caliber 3075, Self-winding mechanical movement with 27 jewels

BRACELET: Rolex stainless steel Oyster bracelet 78360/380

CONDITION REPORT: The dial is in excellent condition with a cream patina on the tritium indexes. The case is slightly polished, but still strong and overall a great condition watch.

NOTES: The iconic Rolex GMT Master was developed as a collaborative project between Rolex and Pan Am Airways. As in the 1940s and 50s flying distances got longer and the pilots travelled through multiple time zones, Pan Am asked Rolex in the early 1950s to develop a watch which could tell different times simultaneously. The model was launched in 1954 and the watch was issued by the airline to their crews on long-haul flights. The first GMT (Ref. 6542) was a regular Turn-O-Graph (Ref. 6202) with a different bezel and a modified movement. The Rolex GMT was designed as an aviator watch: The newly introduced fourth hand allowed the display of an additional time, with the corresponding number markings on the outer bezel. Pilots used the second time to display the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), which led to the name Rolex GMT Master.
This particular reference 16750 has a very rare transitional configuration with the flat dial and the quickset date, while later 16750 had the metal applied hour markers.

SOLD