Scientist Aurélien Barrau spotted wearing a Rolex

Aurélien Barrau, one of France's most prominent theoretical physicists and a familiar face in public intellectual debate, was recently photographed wearing a Rolex GMT-Master II in Everose gold — the reference widely catalogued as 126715CHNR — better known among collectors as the modern 'Root Beer.' The sighting, captured with the watch resting on a stacked wrist alongside several bracelets, confirms the reference clearly through the distinctive black-and-brown ceramic Cerachrom bezel and the warm rose gold Oyster bracelet.

Rolex introduced the 126715CHNR at Baselworld 2018, reviving the 'Root Beer' moniker that originally graced the two-tone steel and gold GMT references of the 1980s. The new generation is built around the in-house Calibre 3285, a movement that brought significant advances over its predecessor: the Chronergy escapement improving efficiency by roughly 15 percent, a 70-hour power reserve, and a paramagnetic Parachrom hairspring. The 40mm Oystersteel case of previous generations gives way here to a full 40mm Everose gold case — Rolex's proprietary 18ct rose gold alloy formulated with a trace of platinum to resist fading over time.

The 'Root Beer' colorway carries genuine historical weight. The original references 16753 and 16758 from the early 1980s were among the first GMT-Masters offered in precious metal combinations, and their brown-and-gold aesthetic acquired near-mythological status among vintage collectors. The 126715CHNR is the direct spiritual heir — and in the collector community it is widely considered the more emotionally resonant of the two all-gold GMT variants, outranking even the 'Pepsi' gold reference 126719BLRO in subjective desirability.

Barrau's public persona — outspoken on climate, cosmology, and the limits of growth — sits at an intriguing distance from luxury watch culture, which lends this sighting a certain philosophical tension. The physicist, known for wearing his convictions visibly, pairs the watch with stacked cord and bead bracelets, grounding an otherwise rarefied object in a distinctly bohemian context.

On the secondary market, the 126715CHNR trades at a significant premium over its already substantial retail price. Grey-market demand remains robust, driven by limited boutique availability and the reference's dual appeal to vintage GMT enthusiasts and modern Rolex collectors alike.