Today, we officially welcome in the Year of the Horse, and to celebrate the beginning of the Lunar New Year in 2026, the Swiss watch industry has been working overtime.
Specifically, more than a handful of watchmakers have announced Year of the Horse special editions, bringing a creative range of equestrian-inspired timepieces to wrists everywhere.
If 2026 is shaping up to be an important year for you and your family, perhaps in the celebration of a new child, the beginning of a new professional venture, or anything else, we’ve wrapped up the very best Year of the Horse watches that perfectly mark the occasion.
Vacheron Constantin Mรฉtiers dโArt the Legend of the Chinese Zodiac – Year of the Horse
When Vacheron Constantin does a special edition, it never holds back, and that’s why we’re getting a release from the brand’s coveted Mรฉtiers dโArt collection.
Cased in 40mm of platinum and featuring a relatively rare (but increasingly well-known) jump hour dial, you’ve got windows for the hours, minutes, days, and date, while the dial itself is crafted from opaque miniature enamel and features a solid white gold relief hand-engraved horse leaping over stones.
Honestly, spectacular stuff.
IWC Portugieser Automatic 42 Year of the Horse
The Portugieser collection has long been IWC’s favourite way of celebrating the Lunar New Year, and in 2026, the Schaffhausen-based watchmaker has debuted a burgundy-dial stunner.
With gold hands and hour markers, a galloping horse that crowns the power reserve indicator, and a specially-designed winding rotor with another horse, it’s the kind of watch you could easily wear as your daily companion.
Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Year of the Horse Frosted Carbon
In 2026, Hublot’s going stealthy for the Lunar New Year, releasing a Big Bang with a 42mm frosted carbon fibre case that’s paired with a black calfskin leather strap.
While the limited edition number of 88 is a good detail, the dial is where the magic happens, featuring an outline of a horse’s head and mane in gold that’s filled with the genuinely unusual craft of carbon marquetry.
Longines Master Collection Year of the Horse Edition
If you’ve come across Longines’ Master Collection line-up before, the baseline specs of this watch will be familiar. It’s got a 42mm stainless steel case, moonphase and date display at 6 o’clock, and an exhibition caseback showing off the calibre L899 that powers the watch.
What is a notable difference is the red-to-black graduated dial (perhaps an option for Essendon fans, too) that’s guaranteed to pop on the wrist, as well as the winding rotor that features an engraved horse.
Clean, classic, and undeniably elegant.
TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph Year of the Horse
TAG Heuer’s 2026 Lunar New Year offering is a watch that demonstrates equal parts tasteful detail and considered restraint.
Using the watchmaker’s 39mm Carrera Chronograph as a template, it features a champagne gold main dial that nicely contrasts against a strong red chronograph subdial, while at 9 o’clock, you’ll spot an aperture with the Chinese character ้ฉฌ (translating simply to horse).
Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Tribute Enamel โHorseโ
Jaeger-LeCoultre knows how to put the caseback of its legendary Reverso to good use, and for the Year of the Horse, it’s used Grand Feu enamel on the pink gold canvas to depict a horse in exacting detail.
The front dial also features a Grand Feu enamel base, emphasising the stark, high-contrast visual impression the watch delivers on the wrist, while inside the manually wound calibre 822 promises 42 hours of power reserve when fully wound.
Blancpain Villeret Calendrier Chinois Traditionnel
Blancpain is one watchmaker you can count on to release an interesting calendar watch at the start of the year (especially on leap years), and for this Lunar New Year, we’ve got one of the rarest of them all: a traditional Chinese calendar.
Featuring displays of the zodiac signs, the Chinese date and month, the five elements, celestial stems, and leap months, it’s also got one of the more beautiful dials on this list in the form of a salmon coloured Grand Feu enamel surface.
Complex, yet thoughtfully balanced, this 45.2mm platinum watch is a heavy hitter from every angle, also boasting a jaw-dropping 168 hours of power reserve (despite its complexity) thanks to the automatic calibre 3638 that’s hidden beneath the dial.
If you enjoyed this wrap-up of our favourite Year of the Horse-inspired watches for the 2026 Lunar New Year, check out a few of Boss Hunting’s other watch-buying guides below:
