Rolex
Circa 1959
6542
DN911629
482'971
GMT-Master
Stainless steel
Automatic, 1066, 25 jewels
Stainless steel Rolex Oyster bracelet, 195 mm. maximum length, end link stamped 65
Stainless steel Rolex folding deployant clasp
38 mm. diameter
Case, dial and movement signed
With Rolex Guarantee dated 12 May 1961, product literature and fitted presentation box.
For another example of a reference 6542 with bakelite bezel, please see Rolex 3621 Wristwatches by Kesaharu Imai, page 193.
Swiss • 1905
Founded in 1905 England by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis as Wilsdorf & Davis, it soon became known as the Rolex Watch Company in 1915, moving its headquarters to Geneva in 1919. Like no other company, the success of the wristwatch can be attributed to many of Rolex's innovations that made them one of the most respected and well-known of all luxury brands. These innovations include their famous "Oyster" case — the world's first water resistant and dustproof watch case, invented in 1926 — and their "Perpetual" — the first reliable self-winding movement for wristwatches launched in 1933. They would form the foundation for Rolex's Datejust and Day-Date, respectively introduced in 1945 and 1956, but also importantly for their sports watches, such as the Explorer, Submariner and GMT-Master launched in the mid-1950s.
One of its most famous models is the Cosmograph Daytona. Launched in 1963, these chronographs are without any doubt amongst the most iconic and coveted of all collectible wristwatches. Other key collectible models include their most complicated vintage watches, including references 8171 and 6062 with triple calendar and moon phase, "Jean Claude Killy" triple date chronograph models and the Submariner, including early "big-crown" models and military-issued variants.
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