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The name “Cerachrom” comes from “ceramic” and the ancient Greek suffix “chrom,” meaning color. The shades of ceramics are limited by how they are made. Generally, color is created by mineral pigments heated to high temperatures, which makes the ceramic dense and gives it its unique hardness.

However, red itself doesn’t have a stable mineral pigment, making it hard to use in a Cerachrom component. Still, Rolex started making red ceramics with a secret method. This is only part of the story for the brand, and it’s more accurate to say that it’s still being completed with the distinctive red and blue Cerachrom bezel.

Facing the remaining challenges, Rolex engineers finally found a solution. This clever method involves adding a new coloring technique to the production of standard Cerachrom bezels. This way, half of the red ceramic bezel can be turned blue. To do this, the part of the watch face that represents the night (6 p.m. to 6 a.m.) is soaked in a special compound solution.

When the solution is applied, the ceramic is heated to over 1,600 degrees Celsius to become strong and achieve the desired color. During this heating process, the ceramic becomes dense, and the added compounds interact with the red Cerachrom bezel’s basic elements to create the final blue color.