Year of the Snake: 10 Watches Celebrating the Chinese New Year

The Chinese New Year is today, and like many years prior, watch brands across the price spectrum have been launching commemorative editions to mark the next yearly lunar cycle. This year is the Year of the Snake, and more specifically the Year of the Wood Snake, with the last time this special year occurred having been all the way back in 1965.

According to tradition, the year and those born within it will embody harvest, spirituality, and good fortune, as well as cunning and secrecy. The Wood Snake specifically also possesses a particular charm, intelligence, and creativity, alongside elements of ruthlessness. Naturally, the ten or so watches launching to mark the special year are plenty charming, smart, and creative, though their secret and cunning are up to the wearer to determine.

Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Year of the Snake

Leading the list is a popular maker of Chinese New Year watches in Hublot. This year, the brand has used its Spirit of Big Bang as a canvas, introducing the aptly named Spirit of Big Bang Year of the Snake.

The new timepiece measures 42mm wide and 14.1mm, being produced in a black ceramic with microblasted and polished finishing. The case and its matching strap are each decorated with a snakeskin texture. The partially skeletonized dial also features a snake motif snaking through its chronograph features.

The watch is limited to 88 editions, with the price marked at $35,100.

To learn more, visit Hublot, here.

Oris ProPilot X “Year of the Snake” Limited Edition

Second on the list is the ProPilot X “Year of the Snake” Limited Edition from Oris. The avant-garde ProPilot X serves as the base design for the new special edition model, the sporty case measuring 44mm in titanium, with a striking, snake-inspired blue-green colorway used for its dial.

Like previous editions of the year, the new edition features a skeletonized dial. The ProPilot X Calibre 115 is visible through the display, the mechanism complete with an impressive power reserve of ten days.

The new Oris is limited to 88 editions and is priced at $9,100.

To learn more, visit Oris, here.

IWC Portofino Automatic Moon Phase 37 Year of the Snake

Launching all the way back in September of 2024, IWC was quick on the draw for launching a special edition for the new year. Celebrating the next lunar cycle, the brand introduced the Portofino Automatic Moon Phase 37 Year of the Snake.

Housed in a steel case with a diameter of 37mm and a height of 11.3mm, the watch features a burgundy dial symbolizing the lively color of fire, traditionally used to celebrate the Lunar New Year. With touches of gold throughout the dial, its moonphase, and a snake-motif rotor visible through the sapphire caseback, the uncommon IWC distinguishes itself in the legacy of the Portofino line.

The Portofino Automatic Moon Phase 37 comes with two calfskin straps, one in black and one in burgundy. Pricing is marked at $9,700.

To learn more, visit IWC, here.

Breguet Classique 7145 Lunar New Year

Fourth on our list is a special edition from Breguet in the Classique 7145 Lunar New Year. Using the delightfully simple Classique design as a canvas, the 40mm by 6.5mm gold watch lets its dial shine through the art of hand engraving and guilloche. A miniature snake sculpture is produced by the effort, commemorating the new year through the subtle sophistication which the watchmaker has garnered so much renown for.

Limited to only 8 editions, the Classique 7145 Lunar New Year is fitted with a green alligator leather strap and is priced at 69,000 Swiss Francs, or approximately 76,800 when converted to USD.

To learn more, visit Breguet, here.

Blancpain Villeret Calendrier Chinois Traditionnel

Not one to be outdone, Blancpain has introduced its own special edition for the year, its fourteenth time doing so. The new watch, known as the Villeret Calendrier Chinois Traditionnel, combines the Gregorian calendar with the Chinese calendar, uniting two distinct timekeeping systems in one timepiece.

Using a green Grand Feu enamel dial for the first time to specially mark the Year of the Snake, the watch is at once delightfully simple to read while mindbogglingly complex in its mechanics.

The Villeret Calendrier Chinois Traditionnel 2025 is equipped with a chocolate-brown alligator leather strap that harmonizes with the dial color and is limited to 50 pieces. The price is 81,000 Swiss Francs, or approximately $90,700 when converted to USD.

To learn more, visit Blancpain, here.

Baume & Mercier Riviera Chinese New Year Limited Edition

Sixth on our list is a new special edition from Baume & Mercier in the Riviera Chinese New Year Limited Edition – Year of the Snake Baumatic Date 10785.

Featuring a Baumatic Date base design, the watch is produced in sandblasted titanium, recalling the texture of rock and measuring 39mm on the wrist. The dial is black with gold accents, with the look incorporating a snake totem meant to evoke a mysterious and profound landscape.

According to the brand, placement of the snake is very specific. The serpent begins at the southeastern direction (towards the 4:30 position), which is the traditional position of the snake in the Chinese zodiac, and its head extends toward the 9 o’clock position, with the appearance of a snake during this time, called chen, considered to be an auspicious sign.

The new watch is priced at $4,950.

To learn more, visit Baume & Mercier, here.

Arnold & Son Perpetual Moon 41.5 Red Gold “Year of the Snake”

As in many previous years, Arnold & Son for this Chinese New Year has also introduced a new commemorative edition. This year, the brand introduces the Perpetual Moon 41.5 Red Gold “Year of the Snake.”

The new watch follows in the footsteps of previous editions by the brand, opting for the Perpetual Moon 41.5 Red Gold as its base design, measuring a namesake 41.5mm in rose gold and letting its display speak for itself without much distraction. The incredible dial thus features a snake motif delicately hand-engraved into a block of 18-carat rose gold and set against a blue aventurine glass dial.

The A&S1512 calibre powers the special moonphase, with the mechanism being entirely produced at the brand’s manufacture in La Chaux-de-Fonds. This calibre uses two barrels and has an oscillation frequency of 3 Hz, providing a 90-hour power reserve.

The special edition timepiece is limited to 8 editions, with pricing marked at $61,600

To learn more, visit Arnold & Son, here.

Perrelet Turbine Snake

Next on the list is the Perrelet Turbine Snake. Opting for the familiar Turbine collection design as its canvas, the timepiece measures 41mm by 13.82mm, being produced in grade 2 titanium with a black DLC coating.

The dial is where the serpent vibes shine, with a red and black colorway giving way to a lacquered sub-dial with golden ideograms of good fortune and the 3D figure of a snake in stamped metal. The brand’s famed rotating turbine, activated by the movement of the wrist, reveals the image of the reptile, while the rose gold-toned hands coated with Super-LumiNova® ensure easy reading even in the dark.

The new Perrelet is limited to 88 editions, with pricing marked at $5,450.

To learn more, visit Perrelet, here.

Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Xiali Chinese Calendar

Second to last as part of the new Chinese New Year releases is a special timepiece from Parmigiani Fleurier in the Tonda PF Xiali Chinese Calendar. Not specifically commemorating the Year of the Wood Snake, but rather just being launched on its occasion, the watch features a namesake Chinese perpetual calendar complication as its central feature.

On the wrist, the watch features 42mm in expertly finished rose gold in a familiar Tonda PF format. The display, complete with various Chinese calendar indicators, is produced in an imperial red with more touches of gold and Grain d’Orge hand-guilloché finishing throughout. Its moonphase is also notably produced in blue aventurine.

The Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Xiali Chinese Calendar is priced at 97,000 CHF, or about $107,250 USD.

To learn more, visit Parmigiani Fleurier, here.

Bulgari Serpenti Automatic

Closing out our list is possibly the most serpentine of them all in the latest additions to the Bulgari Serpenti collection. While not explicitly launched to commemorate the Year of the Snake, the watches nonetheless deserve an honorable mention for their famed slithering style.

At LVMH Watch Week this month, the brand debuted the Serpenti Seduttori and Serpenti Tubogas. The watches, differentiated primarily by the Seduttori’s wrapping, snake-style bracelet and the Tubogas’ more traditional construction, were launched in a variety of new materials and with various degrees of precious gemstones.

The big news of their debut though lay in their updated movements, with each Serpenti now containing the Lady Solotempo BVS100 self-winding movement, manufactured entirely in-house at the brand’s manufacture in Le Sentier. With a diameter of just 19mm and a thickness of only 3.9mm, this petite yet powerful caliber is tailored to suit the distinctive case that has been a hallmark of the collection for decades.

Prices for the new watches range between $10,200 and $126,000.

To learn more, visit Bulgari, here.