MINIATURE WORKS OF ART

The sunray finish is characterised by extremely fine lines running outwards from the centre of the dial’s surface. — Photos: Rolex

The aesthetic identity of a watch is a story weaved through every single part, skillfully put together by artisans well-versed in technical mastery.

A watch’s dial plays an essential role in conveying its distinctiveness, which is why Rolex performs its dial production in-house, mastering ancestral techniques and avant-garde technology.

As the most visible and decorative element, the dial is the visual hallmark of a watch, fulfilling a number of roles: it must allow the time to be easily read, but it has an aesthetic role too.

In-house mastery of dial creation and production is a major strategic advantage for Rolex and, at its dedicated site in the Chene-Bourg district of Geneva, some 500 people work exclusively on dial making.

Sketching the dial of the Perpetual 1908 in 950 platinum.

One of the most significant benefits of manufacturing completely in-house is the collaborative synergy between the designers and engineers involved in dial development.

By bringing all those working on this complex process under one roof, Rolex provides space for boundless creative liberty and a strong dynamic for innovation.

The product of several months of research and development, Rolex dials reflect the brand’s evolving style choices and illustrate its creative potential.

A dial’s colour, reflections and surface texture, along with decorative elements and the overall design give each watch its intrinsic character.

Made from a disc of brass, or sometimes precious metal (18 ct yellow, white or pink gold), dials are coloured using different techniques, and may also feature mother-of-pearl, natural stone or meteorite.

Sample of lacquer used to colour the dials.

The process involves a series of steps and operations that call on specific expertise, from the initial sketches to the final inspection.

Some of these professions – enamelling, for instance – date from the early days of watchmaking, while others are inherent to the use of cutting-edge technologies.

The three principal techniques

Three different methods are used to colour the dials: lacquering, electroplating and PVD (Physical Vapour Deposition).

Lacquering is used to create deep or intense colours such as black and white, as well as pink, turquoise blue and green.

Fine layers of lacquer are applied by airbrushing in a clean room to eliminate dust particles, and once it is completed, the dial is covered with a coat of transparent varnish, which is then polished to a deep shine.

Electroplating, which creates metallic colours, is an electrochemical process where the dials are coloured by immersing them in electrolytic baths.

Here, an electric current attracts metal ions suspended in the liquid and deposits them in thin layers on the dial.

Silver, champagne-colour, slate and steel dials, for example, are obtained via this method, which can also be used to make black dials.

Dial with motif made using the champleve method of grand feu enamelling (Day-Date 36).

PVD (Physical Vapour Deposition) techniques, of which there are several variants, consist in covering the dial’s brass base plate with ultrathin layers of oxides, metal alloys or nitrides.

As the equipment required for the PVD process is extremely complex and also highly sensitive, the engineers work in the strictly controlled atmosphere of a clean room and wear full protective suits at all times.

This is to avoid any dust contamination of the dial’s immaculate surface during the process.

This surface treatment allows luxurious tones to be produced such as olive green or chocolate, in addition to distinctive Rolex shades like bright blue, and softer, more muted nuances including pink, ice blue and dark grey.Finesse of the naked eyeThe colours developed by Rolex are the outcome of extensive research and draw on a range of skills.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the nuance of the classic Rolex champagne-colour evolved several times, gaining in warmth and pinkness before it retreated to greater subtlety.

Ice blue, another distinctive Rolex shade, reserved for watches in 950 platinum, has also varied over the years.

Final surface finishing can alter the appearance and texture of the dials significantly – even a simple black gains intensity with a matte varnish, while gloss varnish will give the same black a more refined and elegant look.

Ultimately, despite the advanced technology mobilised in its conception, the judgement and approval of the new tint for a dial will be eminently human.

Laboratory apparatus may be able to measure the colour and characteristics of thousands of shades created at Rolex, but it lacks the ability to judge beauty, an appreciation that comes only from the naked eye.

Natural stone, mother-of-pearl or meteorite

Rolex has developed special expertise in the creation of dials made from natural stone – eisenkiesel, opal, green aventurine, carnelian or turquoise, for instance.

Cut from a block of raw material, only the discs of material whose colour and structure fully satisfy the brand’s exacting aesthetic requirements are selected to eventually grace the dial of a Rolex watch.

Lacquering is used predominantly to create deep or intense colours such as blue (GMT-Master II and Rolex Deepsea).

The brand also produces dials in natural mother-of-pearl, which can be white (South Asian) or black (Tahitian).

White mother-of-pearl is found in two varieties, the most common has an iridescent and relatively uniform surface, while the second, called “pearlised” mother-of-pearl, presents an irregular, voluminous texture whose appearance evokes tiny overlapping clouds.

This rarest and most prestigious variety of white mother-of-pearl is extracted from the heart of the pearl oyster shell – the oldest part – from which only one or two discs of material can be taken.

On the voyage between planets, fragments of metallic meteorite, primarily composed of iron and nickel, cooled by a few degrees Celsius every million years, creating unique, distinctive crystallisation within the material that is impossible to recreate on Earth.

Metallic meteorite is rare and challenging to work with, but once it is cut into thin sections and a chemical treatment is applied, the great beauty of its interwoven internal structure is revealed.

These fascinating and varied formations are known as Widmanstatten patterns.

For its dials, Rolex works with leading experts in the field and selects only the sections of meteorite with a particularly well-formed surface rich in different shapes and reflections.

Art of enamelling

The expert technique of grand feu enamelling is mastered in-house by Rolex. This complex metier d’art is used in watchmaking, particularly for the decoration of dials.

Fitting the Rolex crown applique on a dial by hand.

The technique, reputed for the intensity of the many colours it can produce, results in surfaces that remain perfectly stable over time, especially with regard to colour.

Impressive puzzle motif dials on the exclusive versions of the Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 36 presented in 2023 were created using grand feu enamelling.

This traditional craft is also employed at Rolex to form the hour markers gracing certain diamond-paved dials.