Rolex MilgaussThe Milgauss is the least-known of Rolex’ legendary toolwatches. After the Genevan powerhouse released a dedicated diver’s watch (the Submariner), a field watch (the Explorer), and a pilot’s watch (the GMT-Master) in the first half of the 1950s, it turned its attention to the needs of engineers and scientists. These men and women often worked in environments with intense magnetic fields, such as power plants, hospitals, and labs. Strong magnetic fields have an adverse effect on the accuracy of watches. This meant that the people that worked in such environments either had to accept a malfunctioning watch or forgo wearing one in the first place. Rolex solved this problem by introducing a soft iron inner case that protected the movement from harmful magnetism. The name of the watch, Milgauss, was derived from the French word ‘mille’ (meaning thousand) and ‘Gauss’ (the scientific unit for magnetism). Tests by the European Center for Nuclear Research (CERN) in the late 1950s showed that the Milgauss was indeed able to withstand strong magnetic fields; an amazing technical accomplishment!The first iterations of the Milgauss, the ref. 6541, was introduced in 1956. The 6541 and its successor the 6543 were cased in submariner-like cases, with rotating bezels. These references were only produced for a handful of years and due to their specialized nature less than two hundred were produced and sold, making them exceedingly rare.