Typically housed in stainless steel, the Rolex GMT-Master is undoubtedly one of the longest-running cult favourites since its story began in 1954. With the birth of ref. 6542, featuring the now-iconic date magnifying bubble and dual time zone complication, this model quickly became a ‘must-have’ for the frequent flying modern-day gentlemen in the 1960s. Once a humble utilitarian timepiece for airline pilots, Rolex had to keep up with its soaring popularity and ever-growing demand by introducing more opulent iterations in precious metals, then later unveiling the highly coveted iced-out GMT-Masters in 1979.
With day and night indication, the present example is a GMT-Master II with a lavishly set bezel in baguette-shaped blue sapphires and white diamonds. Pairing the carefully handpicked stones with a warm 18k yellow gold case, the ref. 116748 SA at hand is most certainly a winner according to John Goldberger, famed author of “Time to Race” and long-time connoisseur of Rolexes with a penchant for golden-era vintage Swiss watches. With only a handful of examples that have surfaced on the market so far, this is an extremely rare specimen, the last of its kind to feature its highly distinguishable non-diamond-set lugs. Offered in excellent overall condition with its original presentation box, this collectable, historically important and distinctive sports watch will be a beautiful addition to any collection.
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.