White as snow: TOP 3 luxury watches made of white ceramic

Since the 1980s, the experimental watch industry has been familiar with ceramics, having previously made a name for itself in other sectors, such as engineering and medicine. Appreciated worldwide for its light weight and high scratch resistance, it was only a matter of time before the first watch brands jumped on the bandwagon. Leading the development were brands such as IWC and Rado, who still frequently use the material today (and even develop it further, see Ceratanium).

In recent months, high-ranking luxury brands have outdone each other with watches made of white ceramic. Here we present three of our favourites.

Chanel J12 (H5700)

Winner of the GPHG Award 2019 in the category “ladies’ watches”, the J12 caliber 12.1 by Chanel has made an extremely impressive debut. With its 38mm case, the watch is suitable for men’s wrists, but also has a huge fan base amongst women. With the Kenissi movement 12.1, which is based on the Tudor MT5612, the watch is also impressive from a technical perspective. The RRP of this model is € 6,100.

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar (26579CB.OO.1225CB.01)

Although not the first ceramic Royal Oak released (a completely black 26579CE.00.1225CE.01 model had already appeared on the market), this watch was gratefully accepted by the watch community in the summer of 2019. The complicated bracelet of this ceramic watch is given an incredible 30-hour finish, which makes it one of the most sophisticated ones ever produced. Of course, everything has its price. In this case: € 96,400.

Zenith Defy Classic (49.9002.670/01.R792)

The watches in Zenith’s futuristic Defy Classic collection also come in a variety of materials: titanium, black ceramic and white ceramic. For €7,100 (€1,000 more than the Chanel J12), you receive a sophisticated manufacture calibre with silicon components fitted in a snow-white ceramic case, to which a white rubber strap is attached.