What Is A 'Soleil' Dial?

By Abbie Harris

When first exploring vintage watches, you may come across some Italian nicknames and French terminology describing a vintage watch. One of the most common terms you will hear is “soleil” dial. Soleil is the French word for “sun” and is associated with the sunburst finish on dials with a radial projection from the center of the dial. These dials collectible in their own right. Similar to Matte dials or Gilt dials, there is an incredible range of watches to admire with the sunburst finish. It is clear that there is a stronger premium for gilt dials, but I would argue the Soleil is the most underrated dial of the three.

These are generally on silver dials, but when you see a grey, champagne, or even blue soleil dial, they are extremely beautiful. The bluesy for instance is one of the most attractive dials with gold accents from the font. The grey soleil dial is also incredibly nice with a subtle touch of white font which can at times disappear or “ghost” at angles. The red font on a silver soleil finish Daytona dial is one of the most emphasized dials. When these dials are hit with sunlight, they are extremely captivating as the dial’s finish will play with the light and emphasize different colors. It is a classic dial variant on the Rolex Datejust, but also found on models such as the Day-Date, Daytona, Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox models, Vulcain Crickets or rare OMEGA Speedmasters. All of my personal Rolex watches feature this beautiful dial category, and I absolutely love glancing down at my watch with this beautiful feature.

Below you can see various examples of vintage watches featuring Soleil/Sunbursts dials. Enjoy!