The best stone dials that we have yet to see

Buffy Acacia

Stone dials are ramping up in popularity, and as a mineralogy nerd, I couldn’t be happier. It doesn’t matter if they’re actually much cheaper to produce than brands would have you believe, or that we still have plenty of Gibeon meteorite chunks to use. It doesn’t even matter that the starry-blue aventurine we all love is just man-made glass and glitter. They look amazing, they have fascinating origins, and that’s all that matters. But, with the exception of a few rare brands like Biver using pietersite and sodalite, I can’t help but be disappointed with the lack of geological diversity on display. To those who saw the thumbnail and threw cash at the screen, I’m sorry, these watches aren’t real. Here are some of the best stones we’ve yet to see get appreciated in watch making, that are actually abundant enough to be used.

Labradorite

With its characteristic flashes of incredibly vibrant blues, greens, purples and oranges, labradorite is almost always an instant favourite of anyone who begins their gemstone journey. It gets its name from Labrador, Canada, where it’s primarily found, but it can also occur anywhere under the right conditions. Chemically speaking, it’s quite a humble and abundant material, and a type of feldspar that makes up around 60% of the Earth’s crust, but its mystical iridescence makes it seem like the kind of thing a wizard would build his house from. There are a few small brands like Signum who do make labradorite dials, but it should honestly be one of the default options by now.

Rose quartz

Quartz isn’t just the world’s most common mineral, but it’s also one of the most diverse. From chalcedony to agates and jaspers, it’s absolutely everywhere. Rose quartz is the variety tinted pink from either titanium, iron or manganese impurities, and it’s one of the most common semi-precious gemstones around. Considering how trendy both stone dials and pink dials have been, it’s absolutely insane to me that we haven’t seen any rose quartz dials. It mainly forms in glassy chunks with marble-like streaks of white cutting through the pastel pinks, and its translucency could even be used to make a semi-skeletonised effect.

Snowflake obsidian

Most people are aware that obsidian is a natural form of volcanic glass caused by the rapid cooling of silicon-rich lava, but it isn’t always just a hunk of pure blackness. Snowflake obsidian forms when the lava is cooled slowly, allowing the silica content to partially crystallise into another form of quartz called cristobalite. When cut and polished, those crystal inclusions leave unique white-grey splotches that can sometimes look like snowflakes or leopard print. There are a couple of incredible vintage references from Gérald Genta and Cartier that used snowflake obsidian dials to great effect, and it needs to make a comeback.

Stichtite in serpentine

From a geological and chemical perspective, serpentine is quite a complex group of minerals. In gemmology, we generally focus on the apple-green form from which it earned its name, looking especially reptilian and scaly. Stichtite is a vivid purple mineral that develops out of the chromium and magnesium components in serpentine, leaving the rock with an intense contrast of complementary purples and greens. Not only are the colours amazing, but the speckled texture is mesmerising. Although extremely rare examples have been found around the world, it is exclusively mined in one location in Tasmania, Australia, and is sometimes known as atlantisite.

Brecciated jasper

It’s another Australian favourite found out west, but brecciated jasper can also occur across most of the continents. Its beauty mostly comes from its impurities, which aside from sounding poetic, give it that rusty red colouring and the thick, varied banding. Jasper is a term for any kind of completely-opaque microcrystalline quartz, and multiple colours were used by Rolex during the height of the original Stella dial popularity. However, the brecciated kind is much more dynamic and compelling for a modern day watch, and it deserves to have its time to shine.

Moss agate

Moss agate has skyrocketed in popularity in recent years, mostly through use of cut gemstones in jewellery. Although there is some debate over the use of the term agate for it, it’s yet another form of microcrystalline quartz whose inclusions define it. The mix of milky quartz and dendrite formations within the stone creates a magical landscape, like a portal to a misty bed of moss creeping into a river. Of all the relatively common gemstones that can evoke scenes of nature, moss agate needs very little help from imagination. A section of moss agate was used by Kross Studio in its KS 05 Central Floating Tourbillon, proving that it’s ready for watchmaking’s centre stage.