Now that the world is done talking about Rihanna‘s baby bump which she debuted recently via a street style-themed shoot with celebrity lensman Miles Diggs, let’s talk about the Rolex on Riri’s wrist: a customised gold King Midas.
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The brainchild of cult watch designer Gerald Genta (he’s the man behind other iconic timepieces such as Patek Philippe’s Nautilus and Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak), this elusive vintage design was created in the ’60s and carved from a single piece of 18K gold.
Known for its asymmetrical silhouette, the ingenuity of the King Midas is apparent when you flip it on its side to showcase what looks like a silhouette of a crown. In actual fact, however, Genta drew from another Hellenic inspiration: the architecture of the Parthenon temple.
Now, Rihanna did put her own golden touch to her King Midas timepiece by roping in independent Bangkok-born, Central Saint Martins-trained jewellery designer Patcharavipa Bodiratnangkura to engrave amorphous designs into the bracelet.
READ MORE: Bulgari And MB&F Have Created A Timepiece With Major Wow Factor
But you don’t really need to take the personalisation route to turn your watches into cool fashion statement pieces. In the gallery ahead, we show how brands like Cartier and Bulgari do an amazing job in giving their gold watch designs a stylistic edge.
Just a disclaimer, though, be prepared to fork out a kingly sum for these gilded pieces.
