At this year’s Watches and Wonders, high jewellery watches emerged not merely as accessories, but as declarations of artistry, innovation and extravagance. The world’s most prestigious maisons transformed precious stones into miniature masterpieces, combining centuries-old craftsmanship with the technical sophistication of haute horology. These are watches designed not simply to tell time, but to command attention, glittering expressions of imagination where diamonds, enamel, rare gemstones and mechanical ingenuity converge.
Cartier
From sculptural serpents wrapped in pavé sapphires to hidden automata and delicately painted dials inspired by mythology and nature, this year’s creations blurred the line between jewellery and wearable art. The maisons approached watchmaking with cinematic flair, Cartier explored elastic architecture and lacquer artistry, Chanel elevated tweed and diamonds into couture timepieces, while Van Cleef & Arpels once again demonstrated its gift for storytelling through poetic complications. Elsewhere, technical bravura met gem-setting mastery, with flying tourbillons suspended beneath cascades of unconventional diamond cuts and hidden movements concealed inside ornamental stones polished to perfection.
More than ever, these exceptional creations reflect a growing appetite for watches that function as objets d’art, deeply personal, intensely collectible and astonishingly labour-intensive. Whether crafted in editions of ten or produced as unique commissions for the world’s wealthiest collectors, each piece represents thousands of hours of human expertise and an uncompromising pursuit of beauty. Together, they offer the most persuasive argument yet for wearing your finest jewels not around your neck, but on your wrist.
Chanel Gabrielle Watch
Chanel made headlines with its chess set encrusted with 9,200 diamonds, but as that was sold to one lucky client before the show even opened, we love the limited-edition Gabrielle watch instead. With almost seven carats of diamonds encrusting the face, and her tweed suit needing two experts to create using a new technique, it’s hardly surprising that only 10 of these special pieces are available.
Audemars Piguet
Établisseurs Peacock Watch
Audemars Piguet announced the launch of a new division devoted to artisanship called Atelier des Établisseurs, allowing the brand to produce remarkable watches using time-honoured traditional crafts. The Établisseurs Peacock is a watch that resembles an engraved white gold beetle when closed. With a simple push, the automaton unfurls the wings and head of a miniature peacock, revealing its iridescent enamel tail. Time is indicated in a window with dragging hours at the centre of the tail.
Cartier Myst de Cartier Watch
Inspired by 1930s archive pieces, this standout Myst de Cartier watch has no clasp, it’s lacquered and pavé sections are strung on an elastic strap that slips over the wrist. Building its architecture around alternating curves, the black lacquer spots were applied individually by hand at the Maison des Métiers d’Art in Switzerland, and setting the jewels alone took over 112 hours.
Hublot Big Bang Impact One Million Watch
High jewellery and haute horology collide in Hublot’s spectacular Big Bang Impact One Million watch, where 500 uniquely cut diamonds spiral dramatically around a flying tourbillon. Set within a white gold case and matching buckle carrying more than 44 carats of stones, the piece is as technically ambitious as it is extravagant. As for the price, the title says it all, each made-to-order creation costs one million Swiss francs.
Bulgari Serpenti Aeterna Watch
Bulgari has been making serpent jewellery since the 1940s, and the iconic Serpenti continues its metamorphosis with an entirely pave-set version of the Aeterna watch. Decorated with 122 precious stones, rubellite, amethyst, topaz, emerald, citrine, sapphire, tanzanite, pink and Paraíba tourmaline, tsavorite and peridot. Plus, obviously, diamonds. Bringing it to life took 225 hours of development, 185 hours of stone preparation and more than 60 hours of setting.
Chopard L’Heure du Diamant Watch
Diamonds are forever, and Chopard offered this excellent take on the theme with its new L’Heure du Diamond, masterfully mingling contemporary vision and vintage allure. The cushion-shaped model is inspired by a 1960s family design and the bezel holds 4.40 carats of diamonds in Chopard’s crown setting, a technique developed by the third generation of the Scheufele family using V-shaped prongs that lift each stone to maximise light penetration.
Piaget Swinging Pebble Watch
Yves Piaget once said that a watch is first and foremost a piece of jewellery, and the Swinging Pebbles collection makes that conviction tangible. Each pendant is suspended from a twisted gold chain and carved from a single slice of ornamental stone, tiger’s eye, verdite or pietersite, hollowed with sufficient precision to enclose a manufacture movement before being closed into a form so smooth and organic it reads as much a found object as a timepiece.
Vacheron Constantin Egerie Moon Phase Spring Blossom Watch
Perhaps the most delicately feminine watch of the season, Vacheron Constantin’s Égerie Moon Phase Spring Blossom celebrates the fleeting beauty of spring blooms. A shimmering pink mother-of-pearl dial, illuminated with diamond accents, is paired with an exquisitely hand-painted strap that extends the floral motif beyond the case.
Gucci G-Timeless Métiers d’Art Flora Watch
Drawing inspiration from Gucci’s celebrated Flora silk scarf, first designed in 1966, the G-Timeless Métiers d’Art watch transforms the iconic motif into an intricate miniature artwork. The design is rendered through a combination of micro-painting, hand engraving and carefully selected ornamental stones. Framed by a diamond-set white gold case, the onyx dial is further embellished with pink opal, blood jasper and mother-of-pearl inlays. Completing the whimsical scene are a diamond-set tourbillon alongside delicately crafted grasshopper and dragonfly motifs.
Van Cleef & Arpels Lady Retrouvailles Célestes Watch
Renowned for bringing poetry and storytelling to watchmaking, Van Cleef & Arpels unveiled the Lady Retrouvailles Célestes, a timepiece inspired by the timeless tale of two star-crossed lovers, Vega and Altair, depicting the couple’s long-awaited annual reunion. Beneath its dreamlike appearance lies considerable technical sophistication, demonstrating the maison’s ability to unite mechanical expertise with extraordinary beauty.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso One Sakura Watch
Jaeger-LeCoultre launched La Vallée des Merveilles and one of the standouts from the collection was the Reverso One Sakura, which celebrates distinctly Japanese symbols in an exquisite miniature scene that uses Grand Feu champlevé enamelling, delicate brushwork, and snow set diamonds with a blend of multi-hued, snow-set sapphires and diamonds to create the effect of sparkling water.
Hermès Cape Cod Mini Gold & Diamonds
The iconic Cape Cod watch was first released in 1991, reinterpreting the signature Hermès Chain d’Ancre maritime motif. Martin Margiela reinterpreted it in 1998, adding a long strap that wraps twice round the wrist. For 2026 this French fancy has been dressed up with a sunburst gold dial, pearled hour markers and gilded hands. Continuing the gleaming theme, 46 diamonds shine brilliantly on the bezel.
