The Rolex GMT-Master was born in 1954 with reference 6542, a pioneering dual-time watch developed for Pan Am pilots navigating the newly opened skies of the jet age. But it was the reference 1675, introduced in 1959 and produced for over two decades, that would go on to define the lineage. Throughout its long run, the 1675 underwent a series of subtle but important evolutions—each one telling a different chapter of Rolex’s tool watch history.
Early models from the 1960s featured glossy gilt dials, radium or early tritium lume, pointed crown guards (PCGs), and chapter rings circling the dial’s edge—hallmarks of Rolex’s pre-professional aesthetic. As the decade progressed, Rolex gradually phased in more functional updates: the triangular-tipped GMT hand was enlarged for better legibility, crown guards became more rounded, and by around 1968, the glossy dials gave way to matte black ones with white printing—ushering in a new era of form following function.
Among these matte dial variants, the very first generation—known to collectors as the MK1 “Long E”—stands as one of the most important. Produced only briefly, these dials feature a distinctive, elongated middle stroke in the word “ROLEX,” along with specific fonts and layout details that set them apart. The MK1 “Long E” matte dial bridges the gap between the romantic gilt era and the practical, modern tool-watch identity the GMT-Master would come to embody. In many ways, it marks the exact moment the 1675 stopped being a pilot’s luxury accessory and became a true icon of rugged cosmopolitanism.
