Rolex is turning the Cosmograph Daytona into an exercise in gemology, craftsmanship, and philanthropy with The Four Seasons, a quartet of entirely unique timepieces created exclusively for charity. Named Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, each Daytona combines a precious-metal case with a naturally patterned stone dial, colored gemstones, and diamonds, transforming one of watchmaking’s most recognizable chronographs into four singular works of art. Developed through Rolex’s Perpetual Planet initiative alongside longtime ambassadors Roger Federer and Leonardo DiCaprio, the watches will be offered individually by Phillips in London on September 28, 2026, with proceeds benefiting the Roger Federer Foundation and Re:wild.
Four Seasons, Four Visions
The architecture remains unmistakably Daytona, but almost everything surrounding it has been reimagined. Rolex assigns each season its own combination of metal, mineral, and gemstone. White gold, Everose gold, yellow gold, and platinum provide the foundations, while chrysoprase, turquoise, mookaite, and blue opal create four dramatically different dial landscapes. The chronograph registers introduce further layers of natural stone, while colored sapphires, tourmalines, and diamonds replace conventional hour markers. Fully jeweled bezels, diamond-set lugs, and crown guards push each reference firmly into haute joaillerie territory.
Spring — Green Stone, Violet Fire
Spring arrives in 18-karat white gold, centered around a chrysoprase dial with contrasting lepidolite chronograph registers. Eleven purple sapphires eight baguette-cut and three square cut mark the hours, while 36 trapeze-cut violet sapphires weighing approximately 5.57 carats surround the bezel. Fifty-four brilliant-cut diamonds, totaling roughly 0.86 carats, illuminate the lugs and crown guards. The result is an unusually vivid meeting of green and violet, with the irregular character of natural stone giving the watch an individuality no manufactured dial could reproduce.
Summer — Turquoise in the Warmth of Everose
Summer shifts into a warmer register with an Everose gold case and a turquoise dial. The chronograph counters are rendered in what Rolex identifies as Heart of Ruby, creating a striking contrast against the blue-green foundation. Pink sapphires appear throughout the design, including 36 trapeze-cut stones on the bezel totaling approximately 4.32 carats, while another 54 diamonds adorn the lugs and crown guards. Turquoise, pink gemstones, and Everose gold combine to give Summer the most exuberant personality of the four.
Autumn — Earth Tones and Green Tourmaline
Autumn embraces the richer colors of the changing landscape. Its yellow-gold case frames a mookaite dial, a natural material whose mineral variations ensure that no two surfaces are exactly alike. Chrysoprase forms the chronograph subdials, while 11 green tourmalines serve as hour markers. The bezel carries another 36 trapeze-cut green tourmalines totaling approximately 4.32 carats, complemented by 54 brilliant-cut diamonds across the lugs and crown guards. Here, Rolex moves away from overtly vivid color and toward something more organic, with yellow gold and earth-toned stone creating a distinctly autumnal character.
Winter — Platinum Beneath a Blue Horizon
Winter may be the most dramatic expression in the collection. Rolex pairs a platinum case with a blue opal dial and deep-blue lapis lazuli chronograph registers. Eleven diamonds eight baguette-cut and three square-cut mark the hours, while the bezel is set with 36 trapeze-cut sapphires arranged in a gradient from blue to fuchsia, totaling approximately 5.57 carats. Fifty-four brilliant-cut diamonds complete the setting across the lugs and crown guards. Against platinum, the combination of blue opal, lapis lazuli, and graduated sapphires creates a restrained yet intensely layered composition.
Caliber 4131: The Mechanical Heart
Beneath the elaborate stones, all four watches share the same mechanical foundation: Rolex Caliber 4131, the automatic chronograph movement introduced with the current-generation Cosmograph Daytona in 2023. The movement delivers approximately 72 hours of power reserve, and each of the four unique watches carries Rolex’s Superlative Chronometer certification, reinforcing that the collection’s emphasis on ornament does not come at the expense of mechanical precision.
Where Watchmaking Meets Conservation
The Four Seasons project is ultimately about more than rarity. The charity initiative brings together two organizations with different but complementary missions. Established by Roger Federer in 2003, the Roger Federer Foundation supports educational opportunities and personal development for children in Switzerland and southern Africa. Re:wild, founded by conservation scientists alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, works with Indigenous communities, local organizations, and conservation partners to protect and restore ecosystems around the world. The proceeds from the Four Seasons auction will be directed to both organizations.
Four Lots, One Extraordinary Question
Rolex has not disclosed official auction estimates, leaving the September 28 Phillips sale with an additional element of suspense. Each Daytona is already extraordinary on paper: individually unique, heavily jeweled, built around rare natural materials, and connected to a significant philanthropic initiative. Yet the most fascinating question may be what happens once the auction begins. Although Rolex conceived the four watches as a unified seasonal collection, Phillips will offer them as four separate lots. Will four collectors divide the seasons among themselves, or will one determined buyer attempt to reunite the quartet?
For Rolex collectors, the significance extends beyond gemstones and precious metal. The Four Seasons represents a rare moment when the Cosmograph Daytona becomes something closer to a contemporary objet d’art four interpretations of time, nature, and craftsmanship, each destined to exist only once.