Baltic pays homage to the world’s metropolises with the new Prismic Stone Dial collection
Borna BošnjakAny time you spend on WatchTok these days, you’re very likely to stumble across a rectangular, vintage Piaget or AP of some sort with a stunning stone dial. At least that’s what I’m told, as someone who doesn’t have the app installed on my phone. Whichever way you cut it, it’s undeniable that the next big thing in dials isn’t a particular colour, but rather a type, that being natural stone dials. While these slim 1970s pieces are becoming popular again, it took no time at all for micro and independent brands to jump on the trend too – and Baltic is the latest brand to throw its hat into the ring. Tributing Paris, New York, and London – the locations of Baltic’s brick-and-mortar showrooms around the world – the French brand is introducing three stone dials for its Prismic collection, limited to 200 pieces per colour. I got to check these out early, and as always, had some thoughts.
Three cities – three stones
Let’s start with what’s new, and the watch that also spent most of its time on my wrist out of the three. If you’ve spoken to me before, I would’ve likely mentioned my mission to find a lapis lazuli-dialled Cartier Tank that may or may not exist, so it didn’t surprise me that this is the Baltic Prismic I gravitated towards most. According to Baltic, the blue of the lapis “captures the timeless elegance of Paris”, and being the most subtle of the three colourways, that certainly seems to be true.
But the thing I like most about this watch, and lapis lazuli in general, are the tiny flecks of shiny pyrite that give of the slightest glimmer. This is something that won’t come up on any of the press shots that you see, and is just noticeable enough in person without being obtrusive.
If you’re partial to something brighter, then the red agate London edition may be the way to go. The example that I experienced was certainly more orange than red, but still featuring those lovely horizontal striations that made the small seconds look like the setting sun at golden hour. The agate dial also has this semi-translucent quality to it, where the applied indices and printed elements of the dial look like they’re floating above the stone on a layer of transparent lacquer. This casts a small shadow beneath all the dial elements, and gives the entire watch a lot more depth when compared to the other two watches.
Lapis is the obvious pick when it comes to blue stone dials, but the choice becomes harder for green. Lately, malachite seems to be the front-runner, with fewer watches picking jasper and jade. It’s the latter that was the solution for Baltic, the mottled green texture of jade chosen to represent New York. While its surface is glossy, it’s not really that reflective, which means legibility is still great despite the high-polished indices and edges of the handset.
Talking about the dials overall, I really like that Baltic chose to go with all arrow indices instead of the pyramid shapes found on the regular Prismic. Not only does this offer another point of differentiation, but it just lets the stone dials be the centre of attention. Mind you, you’ll still find carefully considered design elements if you know where to look. The mixed-finish handset has a cap on the end to hide the pinion, and instead of just sticking a small rectangle below the sub-seconds that could be an oversight, there’s a faceted diamond marker.
Cocktail watch, Baltic style
Though this is just a time-only watch, the case is all but simple. It’s composed of five parts, with the bezel, lugs, and caseback being steel, with a midcase in grade 5 titanium. With this style of watch, any questions of potential weight savings are irrelevant – Baltic chose this complex construction because it’s interesting, and the polished, circularly brushed, and grained finishes work well together.
The Prismic measures in at 36mm in diameter – in my opinion a perfect size for a dress watch – with a thickness of 9.2mm and a lug-to-lug of 44mm. You won’t catch Baltic calling the Prismic a dress watch, though. Instead, this is Baltic’s reimagination of what a cocktail watch could look like today, using design cues of cocktail watches from the 1920s and ’30s.
Between the leather and mesh bracelet options, it’s the latter that really complements the Prismic’s overall design best in my opinion. It’s fitted to the curvature of the case, and very slinky in overall construction. The clasp is easy to operate, and it neatly slides away the extra bit of bracelet – and with drilled lugs (20mm wide) and quick-release tabs, you can experiment with straps to your heart’s desire! A word of warning to the smaller-wristed, however. As this is a mesh bracelet, it has a limit to which it articulates, which could cause unwanted flaring away from your wrist. On my 17.5cm/6.8in wrist, it’s at its limit, and I wore this watch looser than I normally would to account for this.
A quick word on the movement
A dress watch needs to be slim – ideally under 10mm – and the Baltic Prismic manages that thanks to the ETA Peseux 7001. It’s certainly not a new development, but it is a tried-and-true calibre that’s the preferred option of many enthusiasts at the Swiss, manually wound, entry-level end of the market. Though it can be dressed up to the nines (as shown by Furlan Marri), Baltic opts for a more conservative approach, with blued screws, a branded ratchet wheel, and customary Geneva striping. With a 42-hour power reserve, it’s certainly no world-beater, but it also doesn’t command world-beater pricing, either.
Closing thoughts
When thinking about a dress watch from Baltic, my guess would be that most will gravitate towards the MR series – and that makes sense. It’s a more cost-effective option, and it has the added novelty of a micro-rotor movement. Having said that, the Prismic is clearly a step above in terms of finishing and attention to detail. The Stone Dial collection is more expensive than the regular Prismic, and while not much of that cost will come from the raw materials themselves, I do think it’s a worthy tradeoff given the usual price increases stone dials command.
Baltic Prismic Stone Dial collection pricing and availability
The Baltic Prismic Stone Dial collection is now available as a limited edition of 200 watches per dial colour. Each colour will be exclusively available in its particular city boutique – lapis lazuli for Paris, red agate for London, and green jade for New York – as well as the Baltic online store and Time+Tide Shop. Price: €1,250 (leather, ~US$1,400), €1,310 (mesh bracelet, ~US$1,500)
| Brand | Baltic |
| Model | Prismic Stone Dial |
| Case Dimensions | 36mm (D) x 9.2mm (T) x 44mm (LTL) |
| Case Material | Stainless steel and grade 5 titanium |
| Water Resistance | 30 metres |
| Crystal(s) | Sapphire front and back |
| Dial | Green jade, red agate, lapis lazuli |
| Lug Width | 20mm |
| Bracelet | Steel mesh bracelet, folding clasp Calf leather, steel pin buckle |
| Movement | ETA Peseux 7001, manual winding |
| Power Reserve | 42 hours |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, small seconds |
| Availability | 200 per colour |
| Price | €1,250 (leather, ~US$1,400) €1,310 (mesh bracelet, ~US$1,500) |