Explainer / What are secret watches and why are they so coveted? Queen Elizabeth I wore locket rings and Bulgari, Cartier and Chanel still craft stunning high jewellery watches today

Dec 20 , 2021

Assembling a Graff emerald and diamond secret watch, a form of jewellery long favoured by women who didn’t want to draw attention to the fact they were wearing a timepiece. Photo: Graff

The queen’s rings hid a portrait of her mother Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII – and women in the 19th century discreetly checked the time with jewellery watches

Breguet made the first wristwatch for the queen of Naples in 1810, then brands like Graff and Van Cleef & Arpels started hiding the dials in fabulously ornate pieces of jewellery

Jewellery, for all its flashy eye-catching beauty, has been used to hide secrets for time immemorial. Queen Elizabeth I was said to have worn locket rings that hid a miniature portrait of her mother Anne Boleyn – the unfortunate second wife of Henry VIII – while others used jewellery to conceal everything from poison to perfume and lover’s mementos. And up until the 1930s or so, jewellery was also often used to hide something rather unexpected: time.

Until the early 20th century, it was considered rude to openly look at the time, and women in particular were not expected to need to know the time at all. This, despite the fact that the first wristwatch ever made was made for a woman: the queen of Naples commissioning Breguet – often watchmaking pioneers – to make her a watch on a bracelet in 1810.

High jewellery platinum watch encrusted with emeralds, sapphires, rubies and diamonds. Photo: Cartier

To accommodate both the inconvenient need to know the time and the social conventions of the day, women often wore jewellery that hid tiny watch faces under a bejewelled cover so that they could check the time discreetly at social engagements without leaving anyone the wiser. While most often disguised as bracelets, some secret watches were also hidden in rings, clutches and long necklaces – whatever would remain seemly for a lady to fiddle with in an unobtrusive way. At the time, this meant that only the top watch and jewellery houses had the capabilities to create secret watches, as they had to be both tiny – technically complex for any mechanical watchmaker – and beautiful to behold.

Graff Peony diamond secret watch, with a total of 31 carats of diamonds, in open and closed positions. Photo: Graff

In the modern day, when glancing at a watch (or more likely, a phone) to tell the time is a natural action, secret watches still retain their allure. Why? It may be down to the appeal of having a secret while surrounded by others, an appreciation for the craftsmanship required to create them, or perhaps simply because they’re beautiful to look at. Realising this, maisons marry their know-how in jewellery setting and horology with eye-catching novelties.

Chanel Camelia Baroque watch. Photo: Chanel

Graff is best known for its gorgeously elegant diamond jewellery creations, but its foray into watchmaking does not disappoint. Its Emerald and Diamond Secret Watch is a fan-shaped creation covered in custom-cut diamonds and emeralds. A petite kite-shaped dial is concealed under one of its large oval emeralds, which slides aside smoothly to reveal the time. “I spent many hours talking through the design before recreating it in CAD to ensure I knew precisely the vision for this secret watch,” comments Sam Sherry, head of technology at Graff. “By making microscopic adjustments on screen, I was able to ensure the comfort of each bracelet, that each diamond and emerald setting was as discreet as is technically possible, and the secret mechanism opens with exceptional smoothness.”

Chanel Mademoiselle Privé Bouton decor Byzantin bracelet, closed. Photo: Chanel