Rolex GMT-Master 'Root Beer'

Why We Love It The Rolesor (Rolex-speak for Two-Tone) GMT line was introduced in the 1970s and provided a fresh new look to the collection. The combination of steel and gold perfectly encapsulated the preppy stye that prevailed in that period. Moreover, this shifted Rolex into the luxury sphere, which established an upward sales trend that infused much needed life into the manufacture. These models were offered with both black and a variety of different brown “Root Beer” dials and bezels that give the watch a sleek appearance that’s magnified by the flashes of gold from the bezel assembly, crown, and bracelet. While Two-Tone GMTs offer a little more flash than their steel counterparts, they have the same great case proportions and functionality, and have been rapidly appreciating in the collector market. With factory bevels still present and a resplendent 'Tiger's Eye' nipple dial,this piece demonstrates how a watch might age gracefully. The deep, even patination on the tritium handset and nipple indices have developed perfectly over its near 40 year lifetime.  The GMT-Master Story The years following the end of The Second World War saw the world become a much, much smaller place. Advances in aviation technology led to the world’s first nonstop Transatlantic passenger flights between Europe and North America, and the era of the jetsetter began. Along with this new age of travel arose a need for travelers, and more importantly pilots, to have a wristwatch that could display two time zones at once. As a pioneer of transatlantic and transcontinental flight, Pan American Airlines approached Rolex in 1953 looking for a watch specially designed for their pilots, and Rolex agreed to take on the project. The newly designed Submariner became the base for this new watch, and several important complications were added. A date function with a cyclops lens magnifier, GMT complication, and two-colored bezel to provide long-haul pilots with the info they needed as they circumnavigated the globe. The GMT-Master’s 24-hour hand works in conjunction with a rotating bezel to make tracking a second time zone incredibly simple. When the wearer rotates the bezel so that the numbers around the bezel correspond to a second time zone (such as Greenwich Mean Time, the inspiration for the model’s nomenclature), it allows the watch to track any two time zones in the world at once. Not long after the debut of the GMT-Master at the Basel World Fair in 1954, Pan-Am adopted the GMT Master as its official wristwatch. Decades later, the GMT-Master and its “Pepsi” bezel has become a true icon of the watch world. It is instantly recognizable and eternally stylish – the very best of what Rolex has to offer.