There is something deeply captivating in the lustre of a natural stone dial, and we’re seeing a big resurgence this year. Ranging from the intense veined Eisenkiesel stone of the already banging Rolex Day-Date to the demure chic of A. Lange & Söhne’s platinum Little Lange 1, which adds a deeper dimension. I would even go as far as calling it the renaissance of stone dial watches.
The success rate of manufacturing stone dials is often lower than 10%, but the brittle slivers of millennial-aged beauty have a special allure. Previously this meant only high end brands were capable of such feats but now even microbrands like Baltic are getting involved, whose Prismic Red Agate London edition sold out in a flash. But there are a lot still to choose from, all imbued with the talismanic properties, some believe mystical powers, of ancient rock formations. Let’s have a closer look at five sophisticated examples of the genre.
Biver Automatique Atelier Series Obsidian
Seldom has a brand had such a big anticipation of its debut as Biver, run by JC Biver, the Scion of the renaissance of mechanical watchmaking and his son Pierre. But after the knockout glamour of the Carillon Tourbillon with its stratospheric price tag, the brand genuinely surprised us with the Biver Automatique. It was one of the strongest three-hand designs to come out of Geneva this year. We wouldn’t call the Automatique accessible unless your DIY car mechanic beater is a Submariner, but even with a price tag series starting at £67,000, we were hooked.
Two of the watches sit in the upper-tier Atelier series and come with hand-finished stone dials. We’re all about the restrained stealth wealth of the platinum-cased model, which, with an obsidian dial, comes in at CHF92,000 (approx. £82,350). It has a quietly spoken presence and an unusually brushed stepped grey obsidian dial. This is offset by an engraved white gold minute track and overlapping indices with a dynamic faceted wedge design. Monochrome chic doesn’t come much better than this.
More details at Biver.
A.Lange & Söhne Little Lange 1 30th Anniversary
Visiting the A. Lange & Söhne workshops a couple of weeks ago only underlined my deep respect for the brand. But despite a plethora of complexities, what stood out for me was the infinite black gloss of the polished onyx stone in the new Lange 1 and Little Lange 1 references we covered here. And while I deeply respect the larger, more complex references of the brand, the smallest Little Lange 1 is crisp perfection. What drew me to the 36.8mm Little Lange 1 in platinum was its superb everyday wearability, and I consider it the epitome of a monochrome watch design.
With the stealth flex of platinum comes a reassuring weight and an extra depth to the polished lustre and brushwork. But the brilliance of the Little Lange 1 30th Anniversary edition lies in contrasts. Especially the juxtaposition between polished stone and applied white gold details. Each applied diamond-shaped hour marker and alpha hand facet becomes somewhat elevated on the glass-like surface of the black stone. And it is the first Lange to move straight onto my grail list, even with a guessed close-to £90K price (on request only).
More details a A. Lange & Söhne.
Berneron Mirage 34 Tiger Eye
With its delightfully flamboyant case design reminiscent of a surrealist artwork, Berneron has been the toast of watch-town this year. And we get it. All versions of the Mirage come with the same fascinating, organic dial and case design. This case was designed after an optimized solution was sketched out for the in-house calibre 215. Not the other way around. All the Mirage timepieces share the same dizzying dial design and gold cases, but the two 34mm models hit a different note.
Within the 34mm Mirage Tiger Eye sits a solid stone dial. And there’s no escaping from the semi-precious stone being a good match to 18K yellow gold. These smaller Mirages come sans hour numerals; instead, delicate gold prints appear like brushstrokes on the stone. The small seconds register at six-ish on the asymmetric dial is recessed 0.4mm through a hand-carving of each dial. This shows Sylvain Berneron’s obsessive attention to detail and makes CHF 51,000 (approx.£45,480) an understandable price for this wrist art.
More details at Berneron.
Formex Essence ThirtyNine Malachite
However, the deep lustre of stone dials is not exclusive to hand-assembled Haute Horlogerie. Value-driven sports watch brand Formex proves this with aplomb in their Essence ThirtyNine. It is a chunky sports watch with an ergonomic 39mm case and a faceted three-link bracelet. And it rocks with the unusual choice of a malachite dial. The rich striations of the deep green stone is something we’re used to seeing in jewellery and occasionally in more dress-centric wristwear. But here, it works incredibly well as a strong contrast.
Formex’ Essece ThirtyNine Malachite riffs off a well-known fact. Many use a mid-sized sports watch when suiting up. And it makes sense why. The contrast between the deep organic patterns on the dial and the straight-laced class of a suit has a quirky appeal. It also works exceedingly well paired with the muscular case design. And at a mere £1,650, including shipping, this is a big value in our book. The sharp execution of the bold-bezel case and COSC-certified Sellita top grade SW200 movement only underlines it.
More details at Formex.
Rolex Day-Date 36
Rolex might have accessibility issues for dive grails like the Submariner. However, the brand offers some astute choices for everyday wearability that can be found at retail. And while there’s no denying the perfection of a 36mm O.P. as a one-watch collection, why not pull out all the stops? It takes a bold man to rock the Ref.128395TBR, but why not spend £60K+ to unleash your inner movie star? And with the renaissance of stone dials comes a timely reminder. Rolex has been delivering polished goods all along.
There is a deep perfection in the ‘president’ bracelet of the Day-Date 36. Especially when rendered in solid Everose gold, earning its place in Rolex lore. But this is all about stone dials, and Rolex doesn’t disappoint with the diamond-set Eisenkiesel dial. The dark background has a magma flow-like pattern that jostles for attention with diamond-encrusted Roman numerals, all framed by a maximalist diamond bezel. Sometimes, too much is just right, making this one of the best stone dials around.
More details at Rolex.
Oracle Time