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For the first time, Rolex introduces its exclusive Everose gold to the Oyster Perpetual GMT-Master II collection, accompanied by an Oystersteel version with the Jubilee bracelet
Rolex introduces its exclusive Everose gold to the Oyster Perpetual GMTMaster II collection, accompanied by an Oystersteel version with the Jubilee bracelet
LAUNCHED IN 1955, the Oyster Perpetual GMTMaster with its iconic 24-hour bezel with two-tone insert in Plexiglas (red to correspond with daylight hours and blue, night-time hours) witnessed the rapid expansion of intercontinental travel and was appointed official watch of the most glamorous airline of the time, Pan Am. The partnership was marked with a major event in 1959 where the captain wore a GMT-Master as a navigation aid during the Pan Am Jet Clipper’s maiden flight from New York to Moscow.
Since then, the watch has continued to evolve, beginning with the 1959 switch in the material used for the bezel from Plexiglas to a more scratch-resistant anodised aluminium. In 1982, with a new movement that allowed the hour hand to be set independently of the other hands, the GMT-Master II was born. Setting the watch became easier and more intuitive.
The most dramatic breakthrough came in 2005, when Rolex developed its own expertise to produce monobloc bezels and ceramic inserts, and replaced the aluminium with what is now officially registered as Cerachrom, appearing first in black, followed by blue and black in 2013, and red and blue in 2014. The exclusive components are virtually scratchproof and unaffected by the sun’s ultraviolet rays.
Today, for the first time, the emblematic bidirectional rotatable bezel with a 24-hour graduated two-colour Cerachrom insert in red and blue ceramic is available on the GMTMaster II in Oystersteel, with a Jubilee bracelet. Accompanying the new design are two elegant variants with brown and black Cerachrom and Oyster bracelet ‒ one entirely in 18k Everose gold and the other, Everose Rolesor, which combines Oystersteel and Everose.
With a traditional hour, minute and seconds display via hands; a 24-hour hand; and a bidirectional rotatable bezel with a 24-hour graduated Cerachrom insert, it is possible to
read the time in two time zones at once: either the local time and a reference time, or the local time and another time zone as desired. The date, shown at 3 o’clock, is synchronized with the local time display.
The new GMT-Master II is powered by the brand new Calibre 3285, characterized by its exceptional performance, notably against the influence of shock and magnetic fields, with a power reserve of up to 70 hours.
While the supple and comfortable Jubilee bracelet (originally created especially for the Oyster Perpetual Datejust at its launch in 1945) makes wearing the watch a pleasure, the Oyster bracelet boasts the Easylink rapid extension system that allows the wearer to easily increase the bracelet length by just 5mm at a time.
HIGH-TECH CERAMIC
In watchmaking, ceramic, virtually scratchproof and impervious to UV rays, began to be used in the mid-1980s, but knowledge at the time meant that only singlecolour components were available, in either black or white ceramic. Thanks to its constant quest for excellence, Rolex has since carried out its own research and mastered the use of ceramic, producing it in new colours, despite the long and painstaking process.
It begins with the basic preparation of ceramic in powder form, to which binding agents are then added. The mixture, a combination of zirconia and colour pigments or alumina, is then heated and injected into mould to create a blank. Once created, the blank undergoes debinding, followed by sintering, where it is fired at up to 1,600 degrees, a process that lasts over 24 hours to harden the ceramic and reduce its volume by 25 to 30%, during which the component takes on its final colour, or colours.
Final precision machining with diamond tools, the only tools strong enough to use on ceramic, gives the piece the precise shape and size required. Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD) is used to colour the bezel’s moulded numerals, graduations and inscriptions.
During the process, the ceramic is completely coated in a one-micron-thick layer of metal. A final polish removes the metal from the surface and gives the bezel its shine.
Over the years, Rolex discovered the solution to producing two-tone inserts ‒ by making use of the ceramic’s state just after the binding agents have been removed. Here, the ceramic is extremely absorbent, allowing chemical compounds dissolved in an aqueous solution to be introduced into selected areas. During sintering, these compounds interact with the oxides present in the ceramic, causing the colour of the area to change.
Since 2005, Rolex has played a pioneering role in the development of special ceramics for monobloc bezels and bezel inserts. Rolex is able to create these ceramics in single colours as well as two-colour versions. The Cerachrom insert in red and blue ceramic is the most iconic of these, as it calls to mind the colours chosen for the first GMT-Master, launched in 1955. Today, the palette ranges from brown, introduced in 2018, to black, green, blue, chestnut brown and red, adding a touch of vibrancy to the watches. AM
“THE NEW GMT-MASTER II IS POWERED BY THE BRAND
NEW CALIBRE 3285, CHARACTERIZED BY ITS EXCEPTIONAL PERFORMANCE, NOTABLY AGAINST THE INFLUENCE OF SHOCK AND MAGNETIC FIELDS, WITH A POWER RESERVE OF UP TO 70 HOURS”