Rainbow Watches: Are We Turning A Blind Eye To The Provenance Of Colored Gemstones?

Rainbow watches are one of the hottest trends in the watch industry right now, with collectors snapping up timepieces featuring bezels and dials adorned with artistic gradients of colored gemstones, starting with red sapphires at the top and following the rainbow clockwise through orange, yellow, green, blue, pink and indigo precious stones.

The craze really took off in 2012, when Rolex first released its Rainbow Cosmograph Daytona. The watch sold out in a heartbeat, as have subsequent editions, and now other luxury brands—Audemars Piguet, Chopard, Franck Muller, Hublot, Jacob & Co., and Parmigiani, to name a few—are also offering their spectacular takes on the rainbow.
 

The diamond industry made worldwide headlines in the 1990s when diamonds mined in war-torn countries were discovered to be funding insurgencies. In 2003, the United Nations General Assembly reacted by establishing the Kimberley Process, a certification scheme to prevent these conflict, or blood, diamonds from entering the world’s marketplaces. The success of the Kimberley Process has often been criticized, but it was a big step in the right direction.
 

Colored gemstones can be more difficult to track because, unlike diamonds, which are concentrated in southern Africa, Russia, and Canada. They are found in some of the earth's most remote places, in more than 47 countries on six continents. It is estimated that between 75 and 80 percent of colored gemstones are mined in an artisanal, small-scale fashion by small groups of people, making the regulation of this multibillion-dollar industry an almost impossible task.
 

But change is happening as consumers are becoming increasingly savvy and aware of the ethical impacts of what they buy, especially millennials. “In recent years, there has been a growing demand for transparency and traceability in the gem and jewelry industry,” says Susan Jacques, President, and CEO of the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). “Consumers want to know the origin of products; they want to know more about their gem’s journey and the positive impact it has on the communities in the countries where gems are discovered. The foundation of the relationship between brands and consumers is trust. Ethics is a critical component of our industry; it is imperative that we have transparency with consumers.”
 

To ensure the traceability of the gemstones he uses, Salanitro buys his stones in the rough, directly from the mines, which he personally inspects, or from the trading markets, where the origins of the stones have been traced. "Recently, we bought the most beautiful colored emeralds from a mine in Pakistan,” he says. “We bought 11 months of the mine’s production of rough emeralds of the finest quality, totaling 1,200 carats. From this lot, we had 2,000 perfect ‘loupe-clean’ gemstones, 2,000 almost perfect stones, and then 2,000 of lesser quality, but great color.” Only the top-quality stones pass the high standards of the watch industry, leaving 4,000 stones to then sell on to the jewelry market. “I have to make sure that I can sell all of it. Otherwise, I will lose money.”
 

Gem cutting and polishing can sometimes be even more dangerous for workers than the mining itself due to the dust that is created during the cutting and polishing process. Cutting often takes place in the workers’ own homes or small workshops, and many suffer from silicosis, a potentially fatal lung disease. Salanitro can protect the health and safety of his employees by controlling this stage of production as well, making sure that standards are respected.
 

Salanitro is also organizing a trip for his clients this year so he can show them the whole certification process, from the mines and trading places to the cutting workshops, as he feels it is vital for them to see for themselves.
 

“With the help of Eco-Age, we are constantly searching for new ethical suppliers,” says Caroline Scheufele, co-president and artistic director at Chopard. "We started with gold, and then we found sustainably sourced opals and emeralds. The next step will be encouraging and supporting the Responsible Jewelry Council to create a certification for precious colored stones, which is essential for our industry. We are carefully expanding the list of sustainable materials we can use and are on the right path to more sustainable luxury. As I always say, it is a long journey, but it is the right one.”
 

So, next time you are being mesmerized by a rainbow watch, show your interest, ask about the provenance and ethical mining, because the more people who show interest will send a message right up the supply chain that we are no longer turning a blind eye.