HIGH DEMAND HIGHLIGHTS FROM WATCHES & WONDERS 2026
Every year at Watches & Wonders, a handful of releases dominate the conversation before the doors have even opened. This year was no different, but what the most talked-about brands actually delivered was, in several cases, not quite what anyone expected.
A CENTURY WORTH CELEBRATING WITH ROLEX
The centenary of the Oyster case was always going to define Rolex's 2026 collection, and the brand leaned into it with characteristic restraint. The Oyster Perpetual 41 in yellow Rolesor is the clearest expression of the anniversary, featuring gold crown, slate dial, and the inscription "100 years" sitting quietly beneath the six o'clock marker. It is a commemorative piece that earns its status without announcing it too loudly.
Elsewhere, solid gold Oyster Perpetuals return in 28mm and 34mm, with cardinal hour markers set in natural stone, heliotrope on the green dial, and dumortierite on the blue. And then there is the Jubilee motif dial for the 36mm in Oystersteel: ten colours of multicoloured lacquer spelling out ROLEX in a way that is either the most playful thing Rolex has done in years, or a piece future collectors will be quietly hunting for decades from now. Possibly both.
PATEK PHILIPPE WITH SIX PATENTS AND A SURPRISE
For a brand so closely associated with classicism, the Ref. 6105G Celestial Sunrise and Sunset was not the release most collectors had on their radar. The 47mm lugless white gold case paired with a technical rubber strap is a design language unlike anything Patek Philippe has shown before. But look past the case and the watchmaking is entirely on brand with six patents, a sky chart, solar time indications, moon data, a pointer date, and, in a first for the maison, both sunrise and sunset indications with Daylight Saving Time adjustment. It is a watch that asks more of the person wearing it than most, and rewards them accordingly.
ONE HUNDRED YEARS AND ONE NEW MODEL WITH TUDOR
Tudor's centenary was always going to invite speculation, and the brand delivered. Alongside a Black Bay in Black Ceramic and a new Black Bay 58 GMT, the headline was an entirely new reference: the Tudor Monarch. The 39mm steel case and matching bracelet feel both timeless and purposeful, while the dial (inspired by early Tudor Error-Proof designs and finished in a dark champagne that recalls ancient papyrus), speaks clearly to a century of history. The in-house calibre is METAS certified. For a brand that has built its reputation on reliability and substance, the Monarch is a fitting way to mark one hundred years.
THE UNEXPECTED FROM AUDEMARS PIGUET
Audemars Piguet's return to the Palexpo after years away was one of the most anticipated moments of the fair. Those expecting new Royal Oaks were in for a different kind of surprise. Having already presented much of their core 2026 collection at the AP Social Club earlier this year, Audemars Piguet used Geneva to unveil something altogether more unusual: the Atelier Des Établisseurs. Rooted in the historic concept of établissage, the network of independent craftspeople who once supplied parts to Swiss watchmakers, the atelier pairs Audemars Piguet with external designers and artisans to produce exceptionally limited, métiers d'art-led creations. The first three pieces, the Établisseurs Galets, Peacock and Nomade, offer a glimpse of where this could go. It is early days, but the intent is clear and the possibilities are genuinely open-ended.
