Yellow Gold’s Comeback
Yellow gold was a classic from the 1960s to the 80s, after which it was considered old-fashioned, garish, and outmoded. By 2020, 80s-inspired trends were on the rise—cheap quartz watches, Day-Glo colors, Chanel’s Electro aesthetic, bold styling (seen in Tissot’s PRS and the new BR-05), and yellow gold.
Today, two markets exist: yellow gold collector’s pieces made some forty years ago, and more recent watches drawing inspiration from the former, with an increasing number of collections making use of the precious metal.
Yellow Gold Watches of Today
Hublot’s 40th Anniversary Classic Fusion limited edition is yellow gold throughout, reflecting the original material used for the very first Hublots of the 1980s. Cartier recently brought its early-1930s made Pasha to the fore, with the new 41mm version in yellow gold. Bulgari, never slow to unleash in-your-face extravagance, used (if not overused) yellow gold for their Serpenti. Even the trendiest brand right now, Tudor, redesigned its legendary Black Bay with a green dial and a yellow gold case. Independents are also tapping in—Parmigiani with its yellow gold Kalpa XL, Urban Jürgensen’s yellow gold Ref. 1140, Manufacture Royale’s Androgyne, and so on. Likewise, big groups are making use of the precious metal; seen in models such as Chanel’s Première, A. Lange & Söhne’s Saxonia, Dior’s Mini D, Omega’s Constellation, Piaget’s Gala Precious Palace, and the like.
The Big Three & Yellow Gold
The market is nonetheless structured by three flagship brands that steal the show in watchmaking’s auction rooms, collections, and new releases: Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, and Rolex.
The Royal Oak sets the tone for Audemars Piguet—not keen on alloys and composite materials, the manufacturer instead displays a clear preference for noble materials such as gold and platinum alongside titanium and ceramic (steel goes without saying). AP is nevertheless cautious about using yellow gold, with only five current Royal Oak models in the precious metal, some with a distinct frosted treatment resulting in a grained texture. What’s more, the manufacturer has decided to discontinue the 15202 range; the all-yellow gold 39mm Royal Oak Jumbo Ultra Thin reference is destined to become a prized collectors’ item.
Patek Philippe’s Calatrava 5196J ref. 96 is the only yellow gold reference available in their collection. Still, generally speaking, Patek Philippe has remained faithful to yellow gold. It’s used in plenty of its complications: the World Time (Ref. 5231J), numerous Perpetual Calendars (Ref. 5327J), and a variety of ladies’ models. Yellow gold chronographs, however, are amazingly underrepresented. Apart from a few rare references (5270J-001 in 2020) and limited editions (Multi-Scale Chronograph 5975 in 2014), tracking down such a piece calls for a considerable degree of patience.
As for Rolex, yellow gold has been used extensively in their Cosmograph Daytona collections, vintage and current. The acclaimed “Dayto” now accounts for most of the yellow gold watches made by Rolex, along with a couple of two-tone Datejusts.
Is Yellow Gold here to stay?
On the face of things, it seems the comeback of yellow gold is far from fleeting. It’s to be found on some beautiful conversation pieces—the kind of watch that features on the front page of a magazine, but those aren’t always bestsellers.
Steadfast devotees of yellow gold looking beyond the trend may wish to turn to rare collectors’ items on the secondary market, such as Romain Gauthier’s Logical One, Patek Philippe’s acclaimed 5196, and the ultimate, yellow gold Nautilus on a white rubber strap. For the most discerning collectors, yellow gold couples well with atypical case shapes, such as those by Daniel Roth. The rare Vintage 1945 by Girard-Perregaux, or, rarer still, a Cartier Tank Divan Mini—a model that originally passed wholly unnoticed and is now almost unfindable—are also fine selections. Corum’s recent, highly demonstrative Golden Bridge is an exceptionally versatile option, boasting a rectangular format, baguette movement, and infamous yellow gold case.
Brief or otherwise, yellow gold’s resurgence is far-reaching. Time will tell if the precious metal of the moment is here to stay.