Rolex sparkles this Christmas

Oyster Perpetual Datejust 31

The Christmassy-red dial may look festive, but there is more to it than meets the eye. The making of the red dial is a particularly complicated process, involving the application of black lacquer and a specialist’s skill.

The hue is not spread uniformly across the dial’s surface – instead, the red at the centre progressively darkens to a deep black around the rim. It is a pattern that requires an expert hand to ensure the harmonious transition from colour to darkness.

Rolex first introduced this concentric gradient design on colourful dials – ombre dials, they are called – in the 1980s. It was relaunched in 2019, and finds its latest iteration in the Datejust 31.

The beauty of the ombre dial on this 31 mm model is highlighted by sparkling diamonds that double as hour markers, ringed by more diamonds on the bezel.

These meticulous details are the work of highly skilled gemsetters who, like sculptors, carve the precious metal by hand to shape the seat in which each diamond is perfectly lodged. Every stone is artfully placed in alignment with the others, then firmly secured in its gold or platinum setting.

The red ombre dial is encased in 18 ct yellow gold, which comes from Rolex’s own foundry, where gold alloys of the highest quality are cast with state-of-the-art equipment. The glittering case is paired with a matching gold President bracelet, a semicircular three-piece link that offers “the ultimate in refinement and comfort”.

Price: S$70,950

Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 40

The dial of this new watch from Rolex’s most prestigious collection is out of this world – literally. It is crafted from metallic meteorite, originating from an asteroid that exploded millions of years ago. 

On their journey to Earth, fragments of this extraterrestrial material – composed mainly of iron and nickel – cooled by a few degrees Celsius every million years to create unique, distinctive crystals within themselves. A process impossible to recreate on our planet.

Metallic meteorite is rare and challenging to work with, but once it’s cut into thin sections and chemically treated, the great beauty of its interwoven structure is revealed.

For the meteorite dial on this 40 mm Day-Date model, Rolex worked with leading experts in the field and picked only the sections with particularly well-formed surfaces rich in different shapes and reflections.

Baguette-cut diamonds mark the hours on the dial, which is in turn framed in an 18 ct white gold case with a diamond-set bezel. As with all Day-Date timepieces, the watch is worn with a white gold President bracelet.

Price: S$109,100

Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 36

Another beautiful iteration of the Day-Date model in 18 ct white gold, but sporting a pink opal dial in a smaller 36 mm case, its bezel a crown of diamonds. The hour markers in 18 ct gold are set with 32 diamonds; the Roman numerals VI and IX, also in 18 ct gold, are set with 24 diamonds. The Day-Date 36 comes with a matching President bracelet in white gold.

Price: S$98,800

Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona

The sporty Cosmograph Daytona is given a glamorous makeover in this model – and the result is a timepiece glittering in Everose gold and sparkling with diamonds on the dial, bezel and lugs. Everose is Rolex’s enhanced version of pink gold, introduced in 2005. 

The chronograph function is still there, as the self-winding mechanical movement remains untouched. Thirty-six trapeze-cut diamonds decorate the surface where the Cosmograph Daytona’s emblematic tachymeter was, doing away with the scale for measuring time intervals and determining average speeds.

But the chronograph’s 12-hour, 30-minute, and running small-seconds counters – all spray-coated for protection – are still present on the dial.

While the 18 ct gold applique hour markers on the Sundust dial are mounted with baguette-cut diamonds, the hour, minute and seconds hands are coated with Rolex’s Chromalight display, a highly legible luminescent material.

Despite its new radiance, the Cosmograph Daytona’s dial continues to be the drawing board for drivers to accurately map out their track times and tactics.

The 40 mm watch is matched with an Oyster bracelet in Everose gold. First unveiled in the late 1930s, this robust and comfortable bracelet with broad, flat three-piece links remains “the most iconic” bracelet in the Oyster collection.

Price: S$201,050

Oyster Perpetual Lady-Datejust  

It may be the smallest of the Rolex watches here, but this dainty 28 mm timepiece in 18 ct Everose gold has the most brilliant sparkle. The entire surface of its dial is paved with diamonds – 291 of them. The bezel is also set with the gems, and the watch is worn with a President bracelet.

Price: S$84,500