From Floyd Mayweather to Jay-Z – why exclusive diamond watches are a knockout statement accessory

When it comes to diamonds, we always talk about the 4 Cs: cut, clarity, colour and carat. But here’s a look at the fifth: chronos, the Greek word for time. Diamonds can add an inordinate amount of value and aesthetic to luxury timepieces, some of which are the most expensive and spectacular in the world.

The light catches the cushion, emerald, radiant, marquise, pear and princess-cut diamonds of the 2014 Graff Hallucination, transforming the timepiece into a kaleidoscopic marvel showcasing the beauty and rarity of blue, pink, yellow-orange and green diamonds. The stones set on a platinum bracelet are unique; their total weight is more than 110 carats, and the owner of the quartz Graff Hallucination paid US$55 million.

“Coloured stones are very rare. They are collected over years from mines around the world – there is so much energy in those diamonds. The watch is a vehicle for the intricacy of the stones; at first glance you don’t necessarily even see the watch,” says Samuel Sherry, head of creative technologies and production manager of Graff, whose main markets are China, the Middle East and Japan.

It is not only about the value, since a watch is not about telling time in this age of mobile phones. A spectacular watch is more of a personal statement – and diamonds are good for that,” says Sherry.

Diamond cutting and setting is a craft dating back to the 16th century, and industry professionals agree that you can only understand the weight and movement of a stone with your hands. Sherry and his colleagues, however, also train their artisans to work with 3D imaging on computers. “With computer aided design you can further enhance precision in certain repetitive patterns, for instance on a bracelet with repetitive joints. It also enables quick prototyping in resin before we commit to working with real stones.”

Despite the extreme rarity of pink diamonds, Chopard was able to release the Red Carpet collection in 2019, which featured 4.8 carats of brilliant-cut pink diamonds surrounding the paved dial, creating a bezel and bracelet evoking Japanese cherry blossoms. The watch body is made of ethically mined 18-karat gold. The front is circled by 20 marquise-cut white diamonds, and at 12 and 6 o’clock two pear cut fancy grey-blue light diamonds weighing in at two carats each emphasise the timekeeping function. The price? US$3.374 million.

In 2019 Chanel joined the fully paved baguette-cut bandwagon with a unique piece based on the J12 model. White diamond settings are more about cohesive colour and brilliance, and by repeating the rectangular, parallel facets of the 14-sided baguette cut, Chanel’s artisans have created an extremely precise structure. The 38-millimetre 18-karat white gold case is set with 77 baguette-cut diamonds, the dial with 168, the bezel with 46 and the bracelet with 502. Even the black oscillating mass powering the chronometer certified manufacture movement is set with 52 baguette-cut diamonds – the only odd one out is a single brilliant diamond on the crown. The 846 diamonds have a sum total of around 44.26 carats. The recommended retail price is US$1.219 million.

Over its 145-year history, Piaget has become both a fully fledged manufacture watchmaker and a master of high jewellery in one of Geneva’s largest high jewellery ateliers. Its most extreme diamond watch to date has been the US$3.5 million Piaget Emperador Temple. In the 2019 collection, the reigning queen is the Limelight Aura. This 32 x 35-millimetre, slightly oval white gold case with a subtly tapered bracelet is set with a total of 302 white baguette and emerald-cut diamonds with a total weight of 59 carats. The retail price is HK$11.7 million.

If you look back in history, a collector’s willingness to pay for unique diamond creations has increased tenfold in recent times. In 1977, Vacheron Constantin Kallista was, at €5 million, the most expensive watch ever made. Designed by French painter Raymond Moretti, it is set with 118 white emerald and Asscher cut diamonds with a total weight of 130 carats. However, you cannot compare its weight and price with Graff’s Hallucination, since coloured stones fetch a much higher price than white ones.