There is something deeply captivating in the lustre of a natural stone dial, and we’re seeing a big resurgence this year following the growth in collector interest that picked up at the tail end of 2024. From classic mainstays of the stone dial world like Rolex to increasingly accessible alternatives from the likes of Formex and Christopher Ward, 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.
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. 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 CHF 92,000 (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.
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 10mm thickness, platinum case, brushed grey obsidian dial
Water resistance: 80m (8 bar)
Movement: Calibre JCB-003, automati,c micro-rotor, 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz) frequency, 65h power reserve
Strap: Leather strap, platinum pin buckle
Price: CHF 92,000 (approx. £82,350)
A. Lange & Söhne Little Lange 1 30th Anniversary
Visiting the A. Lange & Söhne workshops 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. The brilliance of the Little Lange 1 30th Anniversary edition lies in contrasts. Especially the juxtaposition between polished stone and applied white gold details.
Case/dial: 36.8mm diameter x 10mm thickness, platinum case, polished black onyx dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Lange manufacture calibre L121.1, hand-wound, 21,600 vph (3 Hz), 72h power reserve
Strap: Alligator leather strap with pin buckle
Price: On request, limited to 150 pieces
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.
Case/dial: 30mm width x 34mm height x 7mm thickness, 18k yellow gold case, tiger eye stone dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Berneron calibre 215, manual winding, 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz) frequency, 72h power reserve
Strap: Barenia leather strap, 18k gold pin buckle
Price: CHF 54,000 (excl. VAT)
Formex Essence ThirtyNine Malachite
Today, 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 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. And at a mere £1,750, 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.
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 10mm thickness, stainless steel case, malachite stone dial
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Sellita calibre SW200-1 (COSC), automatic, 26 jewels, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency, 41h power reserve
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet
Price: £1,750
Rolex Day-Date 36 Eisenkiesel
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.
Case/dial: 36mm diameter, Everose gold case, Eisenkiesel stone dial set with diamonds, diamond bezel
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Rolex calibre 3255, automatic, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency, 70h power reserve
Strap: Everose gold President bracelet
Price: £60,250
Christopher Ward C63 Sealander Rocks
Once upon a time, stone dials were very exclusive due to the difficulty in machining the precious materials to appropriately thin proportions. It meant you could mostly find them in watches from high end brands like Rolex and Bulgari. Now though, times have changed and even independent brands like Christopher Ward can produce attractive stone dial watches. As seen by the unveiling of the C63 Sealander Rocks Limited Edition. There are four watches in the series, each limited to 150 pieces and the four stones you can pick from are malachite, tiger’s eye, charoite and turquoise.
Case/dial: 36mm diameter x 11.05mm thickness, stainless steel, charoite stone dial
Water resistance: 150m (15 bar)
Movement: Sellita SW200-1, automatic, 26 jewels, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency, 38h power reserve
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet
Price: £950
Nivada Grenchen F77 Stone Dials
Measuring 37mm in diameter with a thickness of 12.1mm, they fall into the retro sizing that has seen a major comeback in 2025. As for the stone dials that are central to this release, there are two tiger’s eye models (one in plain steel and the other in bicolour), a malachite edition and one in green aventurine. Malachite is one of the most traditional semi-precious stones used in watchmaking due to its intense colours and eye-catching striations. Green aventurine is a much less common stone to see, giving the dial significantly more texture and individuality.
Case/dial: 37mm diameter x 12.1mm thickness, stainless steel, green aventurine stone dial
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Soprod calibre P024, automatic 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency, 38h power reserve
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet
Price: £1,450, limited to 75 pieces
Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 Flying Tourbillon Stone Dial
There are three references in the new Code 11.59 Flying Tourbillon Stone Dial collection, two in pink gold and one in white gold. The first pink gold number has a malachite dial, which is the most traditional of the stones on display here with its rich green tone and striated pattern. Second of the pink gold releases is a more unusual stone in the form of blue sodalite. It’s a stone known for its intense blue hue and naturally occurring white veins that add character to the display and ensure each dial is utterly unique. Completing the trio is the white gold edition, which features a ruby root stone display. The term ‘ruby root’ has multiple definitions but in this context it likely refers to a stone with a high corundum composition, which is the material that gives rubies their red colour.
Case/dial: 38mm diameter x 9.6mm thickness, 18k gold, red ruby root stone dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: AP Calibre 2968, automatic, 21,600 vph (3 Hz) frequency, 50h power reserve,
Strap: Alligator leather with gold folding clasp
Price: Price on request
H. Moser & Cie. Endeavour Small Seconds Concept Pop
The Small Seconds is the simplest of the Concept Pop editions with a 38mm steel case housing the HMC 202 automatic movement with 72-hour power reserve. The dial incredibly minimalist with just the primary stone occupying the majority of the display with the secondary stone for the small seconds subdial at 12 o’clock. Beyond the delicately shaped hands, there are no other markings or logos. It’s a limited edition of 28 pieces per colour, priced at CHF 30,500 (approx. £26,750). The stones are Burmese jade, turquoise, coral, pink opal, lapis lazuli, lemon chrysoprase and the combinations are as follows: jade + pink opal, pink opal + jade, lapis lazuli + lemon chrysoprase, lemon chrysoprase + lapis lazuli, turquoise + coral, coral + turquoise.
Case/dial: 38mm diameter, stainless steel case, lemon chrysoprase and lapus lazuli stone dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: HMC 202 automatic, 72h power reserve, 21,600 vph (3 Hz) frequency
Strap: Grey ostrich leather, steel pin buckle
Price: CHF 30,500 (approx. £26,750), limited to 28 pieces
Piaget Andy Warhol Watch ‘Collage’
True to the collection’s roots, Piaget’s arty Andy Warhol watch collection has been going hard with the stone dials over the past year. The fact that stone dials are on fire right now helps too, of course. But for their latest interpretation of the legendary pop artist’s favourite wrist candy, Piaget has taken the idea one step further with a fittingly artistic interpretation in the Piaget Andy Warhol Watch Collage. Rather than a single material, the dial’s constructed from four different stones: black onyx (the same colour as Andy Warhol’s own watch), yellow Namibian serpentine, pink opal and green chrysoprase. These impossibly thin slivers of stone have then been arranged mosaic-like in a way evocative of the coloured squares of Warhol’s collage works – hence the name.
Case/dial: 45mm width x 43mm height, 18k yellow gold case, yellow serpentine, pink opal and green chrysoprase
Water resistance: TBC
Movement: Piaget calibre 501P1, automatic 23 jewels
Strap: Green leather with 18k yellow gold buckle
Price: 67,500, limited to 50 pieces
Tissot RockWatch
There’s no beating around the bush here, the central focus of this watch is the fact that its 38mm case and dial are made from genuine granite from the Jungfrau Mountain in the Swiss Alps. It has a deeply mottled appearance, with shades of grey, brown and white in a chaotic and random pattern that almost mesmerises the eye. Placing the emphasis not on the semi-precious or precious stones that so often take up our attention in the watch industry, but the foundational rock below. In order to bring the RockWatch into the 21st century, there have been a few updates compared to the original design. Most notably the coloured hands have been replaced by sleek, nickel plated ones instead.
Case/dial: 38mm diameter, granite case and dial
Water resistance: Not rated for swimming (dust/moisture resistant only)
Movement: Swiss quartz
Strap: Leather strap
Price: £995, available exclusively at Covent Garden Tissot boutique
Furlan Marri Disco Volante Onyx Diamonds
Everything you need to know about this watch is essentially included in that name. The round, 38mm case now houses a deep black dial made from semi-precious onyx stone on top of which are lab-grown diamond hour markers. This is Furlan Marri’s first venture into diamonds, adding a new level of luxury and sparkle to the display. Lab grown diamonds that are synthetically produced are regarded as the most ethical way to source the gems in modern times as they avoid the damage to the environment caused by mining. Beneath the updated display is the ETA Peseux 7001 with its bridges redesigned and hand-finished by Furlan Marri.
Case/dial: 38mm diameter x 8.95mm thickness, stainless steel, onyx stone dial with six baguette lab-grown diamond markers
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Peseux calibre 7001, manual winding, 24 jewels, 42h power reserve
Strap: Stainless steel mesh bracelet
Price: CHF 3,500 (approx. £3,250)
Arcanaut Experimental: Arc II Garnet Goblin
The watch is based on the Arc II, so there’s not a huge amount that’s new about the 40.5mm steel case, with its CNC milled shape that feels modern and industrial. What makes this limited-edition special is the dial, which is formed of a cluster of 0.8mm garnets that are bonded together and polished down to a flat disc. Garnets have a strong connection to Czech culture and are considered their national gem, occurring naturally in the Bohemia region. The garnets are sourced from the Turnov surface mine by a famous Czech garnet brand, Granát Turnov. They hand-finish every stone to ensure the highest quality, which is why the dial of the Experimental: Arc II Garnet Goblin appears almost fiery, such is its clarity and intensity of colour.
Case/dial: 40.52mm diameter x 12.82mm thickness, stainless steel case with ‘skeleton framing’ decoration case, eský Granát (Czech Garnet) Cluster dial, hand polished in Copenhagen; garnets sourced from the historic Turnov Garnet company in Czechia
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Soprod calibre M100, automatic, 25 jewels, 42h power reserve, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency
Strap: Rubber
Price: £3,957, limited to 66 pieces
Zenith G.F.J
As the Zenith G.F.J is a new model for 2025, it features a new case. It measures 39.15mm x 10.5mm in platinum 950, the most prestigious of the watchmaking precious metals. It has a stepped bezel and sweeping, stepped lugs as well. Focussing in on the dial, it’s formed of three parts. There’s the guilloché hour scale with white gold indexes, a central disk of lapis lazuli and a large subdial for the seconds made from blue mother-of-pearl. In isolation I wouldn’t necessarily call any of those individual elements Metiers d’Art, unlike say enamel or an engraved sculpture, but the fact that they’ve used them all together and showcased multiple skills across multiple materials both metallic and precious stone, I would say the complete dial fits the description.
Case/dial: 39.15mm diameter x 10.5mm thickness x 45.75mm lug to lug, platinum 950 case, blue bricks guilloché (outer ring), Lapis Lazuli (center), mother-of-pearl (small seconds)
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Zenith calibre 135, manual winding, 72h power reserve, 18,000 vph (2.5 Hz) frequency
Strap: Blue alligator leather with platinum pin buckle
Price: CHF 48,900 (approx. £42,750), limited to 160 pieces
Ball Engineer III Bright Path
The story of the Bright Path is linked to that of Jim Thorpe, an American athlete born in 1882 who would later become the first Native American to win an Olympic gold medal for the USA. Thorpe’s Native American name was Wa-tho-huk, which translates to Bright Path, hence it being adopted as the Ball’s name. What really makes the Ball Engineer III Bright Path stand out is the tigerite (aka tiger eye) semi-precious stone dial. Ball are not a brand typically associated with stone dials so it’s been interesting to see them slowly expand the number of watches that feature them, such as their recent Year of the Snake release in malachite. The logic of using tigerite here is the gold colour is symbolic of Thorpe’s gold medals.
Case/dial: 36mm diameter x 11.5mm thickness, stainless steel case, tigerite stone dial
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Ball calibre RR1101-C, automatic, 21 jewels
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet
Price: £2,490, limited to 1,000 pieces
Dennison ALD Dual Time
The Dennison ALD Dual Time is a watch fan’s dream. Designed by Emmanuel Gueit (of Royal Oak Offshore and Rolex Cellini fame), it channels his father’s advice that a watch should be recognisable across a room. With its sweeping, TV-style cushion lines, the ALD Dual Time does exactly that. The 37mm x 35.6 mm case is 6.1 mm thick, housing two independent Swiss Ronda quartz movements controlled by twin crowns. That symmetry gives the mineral dials, whether split between contrasting stones or cut from a single slab of lapis, malachite, tiger’s eye or aventurine, space to shine.
Case/dial: 37mm height x 35.6mm width x 6.1mm thickness, stainless steel, natural Bloodstone & Lapis Lazuli
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Twin Swiss Ronda quartz movements (independent timezones)
Strap: Leather
Price: £682
Loresum LS06
Enter the Loresum LS06, an elliptical cased watch with small seconds display powered by a micro-rotor movement and neatly sized at 39mm x 35.5mm. It’s a charming dress watch collection. It’s available with a variety of stone dials that includes malachite, onyx, lapis lazuli, tiger’s eye and charoite. With its rounded display, it offers plenty of surface area with which to admire the focal stone. The charoite version stands out for its distinctive colour, and the rarity of a stone exclusive to the region of Siberia. It’s a prime example of stone dials becoming more accessible among micro and independent brands.
Case/dial: 39mm height x 35.5mm width x 9.4mm thickness, stainless steel case, malachite stone dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: HZ calibre HZ5000A, automatic, micro-rotor, 42h power reserve, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency
Strap: Epsom style
Price: £390
Makoto Kodawari
Japanese-inspired microbrand Makoto is getting in on the stone dial trend in a big way with the Kodawari, a collection of charming, streamlined 39mm watches crowned with malachite, meteorite, red agate and this dark lapis lazuli dubbed the Sora. There are also a pair of 37mm models in turquoise and pearl, but with its lumed peripheral ring, 12, 9, 3 numerals and colour-matched date window at six o’clock, this larger, bluer model is a surprisingly affordable winner no matter your wrist size. It’s another sign that we should be paying attention to small, independent Japanese brands as well as the mainstay names like Citizen and Seiko.
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 11.25mm thickness, stainless steel case, Lapis Lazuli stone dial
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Miyota 9015 automatic, 24 jewels, 42h power reserve
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet
Price: From $766 (approx. £570)
Feynman Q Turquoise
A celebration of colour and quirk, the Feynman Q pairs vibrant stone dials (turquoise, malachite or tiger’s eye) with an avant-garde hand and case design, and a sleek 7mm profile topped off with a handmade leather strap. The subdial also uses Chinese typography and characters for an additional talking point. Another fun detail is that the seemingly wonky angles of the hands come together once every hour to form a diamond shape, linking to the individuality of gemstones such as those found in the dial. As the Q in its name indicates, it’s powered by the Ronda calibre 1014 quartz movement.
Case/dial: 34mm diameter x 7mm thickness, stainless steel case, turquoise stone dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Ronda 1014 quartz
Strap: Handmade leather
Price: £472.95
Gerald Genta Geneva Minute Repeater
Gerald Genta is probably the most famous watch designer in history known for his identifiable style, worldclass designs and attention to detail. While watches like the Patek Philippe Nautilus, Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and IWC Ingenieur lead the way, he also produced watches through his eponymous brand Gérald Genta. Today that brand finds itself in the stewardship of La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton, who have produced the new Gérald Genta Minute Repeater. While the complication is the focus of this timepiece, it’s presented with an onyx dial, showcasing the sleek, black appearance of the stone in flawless fashion.
Case/dial: 40mm diameter x 9.6mm thickness, 3N yellow gold, onyx stone dial
Movement: Gérald Genta calibre GG-002, manual winding, 32 jewels, 21,600 vph (3 Hz) frequency, 80h power reserve
Strap: Black sheep leather with yellow gold pin buckle
Price: Price on request, limited to 10 pieces per year
Grandeur Strange Quartz
After a series of mechanical editions, Grandeur have released a quartz version of the Strange, making their crazy hours style timepiece even more accessible. Crazy hours is a term that refers to an hour scale that is not in linear order, making the hour hand swing around the dial in a chaotic order. The display is available in a variety of materials including red agate, opal, blue pietersite, marble or lapis lazuli. It’s also ultra-slim at 8mm thick, with a diameter of 39mm in an Avant Garde shape and irregular lugs.
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 8mm thickness, stainless steel, opal stone dial
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Quartz
Strap: Leather and additional rubber strap
Price: £534
Frederique Constant Manufacture Classic Perpetual Calendar
Frederique Constant and affordable haute horology go hand-in-hand, to the point where if you see a classical looking tourbillon or perpetual calendar that you can actually afford, there’s a good chance it’s one of theirs. And while their latest doesn’t reinvent the wheel, the new Frederique Constant Manufacture Classic Perpetual Calendar in gold makes as big a splash as ever – now in a more luxurious interpretation. That’s seen on the dial, now in black onyx and gold. As with previous Manufacture Classic Perpetual Calendar models, you have months and leap years at 12 o’clock, days at 9 o’clock and date at 3, all on subdials. At 6 o’clock is the seemingly requisite moon phase, here looking better than ever with the high contrast of the gold against black.
Case/dial: 40mm diameter x 12.25mm, 18k yellow gold case, black onyx dial with gold markers
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: FC-776 automatic, 26 jewels, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency, 72h power reserve
Strap: Black alligator with 18k gold folding clasp
Price: £27,295, limited to 37 pieces (yellow gold)
