Rolex GMT Master*** 6542 Bakelite*** 1958

OUR ARCHIVE » Rolex GMT Master*** 6542 Bakelite*** 1958

ROLEX Vintage GMT Master 6542 Bakelite ‘Pepsi’, original condition, 1958
Serial # 397528
Circa: 1958

DESCRIPTION:
Original condition vintage Rolex GMT Master with gilt dial, red date and bakelite bezel

MOVEMENT:
Caliber 1036, Self-winding mechanical movement with 25 jewels
Note: Movement needs to be serviced at buyer’s expense

DIAL:
Original black gilt dial with triangle, circle and baton luminous hour markers beautifully aged and beveled date aperture at 3 o’clock. Silver color hands with center sweep seconds and red GMT hand with triangular luminous tip.

CASE:
39mm, original condition stainless steel case with blue & red bakelite bezel & no crown guard. Acrylic glass with loupe for date at 3 o’clock. Inner case back engraved 6542 and III.1958.

BRACELET:
Brown leather strap with Rolex crown buckle

MANUFACTURER: Rolex

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.

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