Dendera Zodiac

A round sandstone relief of the night sky is the dial, inspired by the ancient Egyptian Dendera zodiac: the constellations carved as a ram, a bull, a lion, scorpions and crabs in a slow spiral round the centre, the star-gods walking round the rim, and a border held up by standing goddesses and kneeling falcon-headed figures, all in warm weathered stone under a soft raking light. The relief's centre sits right under the hands.

Hours carved in stone

Twelve marks are cut into the border, each groove shadowed on its upper edge and catching the light on its lower one, as the carving round them does. At the quarters, small carved motifs: a winged sun disc at 12, ankhs at 3 and 9 and a five-pointed star at 6, like the stars on the relief.

Gold and lapis hands

Bold hands of Egyptian gold inlaid with deep lapis blue, outlined dark so they stand clear of the carving: the hour hand ends in a small ankh loop, the minute hand is a slender spear. A slim carnelian seconds hand and a gold scarab at the centre.

Tap: the sky awakens

Tap the watch face and the carved figures fill with warm gold light, spreading along a spiral from the centre out to the rim, then fading back into the stone.

Every hour, a shaft of sunlight

As the hour turns, a shaft of sunlight crosses the relief and the light swings round, relighting every carved line from a new direction before it settles.

Readings in cartouches

Steps, unread notifications and battery, with the day and date, cut in small letters into smooth cartouches in the stone. Put another app's complication there and it shows that app's icon, or its title where it sends no icon.

Three stones

• Sandstone: the warm stone as it is today.
• Painted: the ancient colours restored as faded traces of ochre red, turquoise and lapis blue.
• Night: the relief by moonlight, cool blue-grey with deep carving.

Easy on the battery

The hands move once a second; the golden spiral plays only on a tap and the sunlight only on the hour. Always-on shows the border's rings and the hour marks as faint lines and the hands as dim outlines.

Make it yours

• Stone: sandstone, painted or night.
• Three complications.

To customize, touch and hold the watch face, then tap Customize.

Works on watches with Wear OS 6 or later. Made in Watch Face Format: nothing to install on your phone, no permissions, no data collected.

Part of Tempus Arcanum, a collection of watch faces.