Did you say ceramic?
First used in the medical sector, the space and aeronautics industries, the ceramic technique used in watchmaking - thus to be distinguished from ceramics in art - is the result of a powder, very often aluminium or zirconium oxide, being heated to a very high temperature. Appearing in watchmaking in the 1980's with the Swiss firm Rado, this hi-tech material has since convinced a number of brands such as IWC, Chanel, Rolex and Omega. In addition to its specific properties, ceramic is highly appreciated for its array of appealing colours, resistant to ultraviolet rays.

Ceramica, or the early stages of ceramic in watchmaking 
Just like carbon and titanium, ceramic had a powerful impact on modern watchmaking. While Rado used this material for the first time in 1986 for its "Integral" model, and IWC treated its "Da Vinci" the same year to a case made of tinted zirconium oxide, it was with the "Ceramica" that the Swiss firm would really stand out.

Launched in 1990, this model is seen as the world's very first watch to come with a bracelet, a crown and a case entirely made of hi-tech ceramic. It was Chanel, however, that would make the material more widely popular with its iconic "J12" on a ceramic bracelet which would be worn by the most prominent celebrities, both men and women. Originally proposed in black, it then appeared in white.

A few years later, in 2005, Rolex unveiled its first watch with a ceramic insert on the case, though in 2013 the brand with the Crown logo also proved to be a pioneer by presenting its first two-colour ceramic bezel on an Oyster Perpetual GMT-Master II. A first worldwide.

Ceratanium®, Ceragold™ etc.
Nowadays, watchmakers are pursuing their innovative activities by blending ceramic with other materials. Such is notably the case for IWC, creator of Ceratanium® (Ceramized Titanium), a material combining the advantages of titanium and ceramic in a single raw material. And it's the same story from Omega with its Ceragold™, allowing for numbers and scaling in 18-carat gold on a ceramic bezel, harmoniously blending these two materials for the first time.