The durability and rarity of platinum drive watchmakers toward this wedding-band favorite.

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Platinum is 30 times scarcer than gold, 2.7 times denser than steel and (like human muscles) its strength builds with use. The element is widely used in fine jewelry making, as its durability is unparalleled among precious metals. It is highly resistant to wear and corrosion, plus it’s hypoallergenic.

Diamonds set in platinum have become a standard for engagement rings, as well as wedding bands. Pierre Cartier chose platinum to set the storied Hope diamond for heiress Evalyn Walsh McLean in 1911. Lately the dense metal has played a leading role in watchmaking for the most luxurious of brands.

While the word platinum has its roots in the Spanish word platina, meaning little silver, the metal is anything but little nor is it silver. As one of the six metals classified in the platinum group on the periodic table, platinum is considered a noble metal, meaning it is highly resistant to corrosion when exposed to high heat or moisture. Other metals in this category include palladium, silver, iridium and gold.

“For the case of a timepiece, it’s a tough and more wear-resistant material to use,” says Stephen Forsey, founder of Greubel Forsey, a Swiss watchmaking company that makes timepieces in both platinum 950 and 18-karat white gold. “It is a very dense metal, which can make it useful to the watchmaker; it is almost 20 percent more dense than 18-karat gold.”

While wear and tear can leave scratch marks on platinum, no measurable amount of metal is lost. Yet each time gold is scratched, a bit of the metal is scraped away. Scratch platinum and it just becomes more compressed. After constant use over years, a gold ring can turn visibly worn and lose weight. But jewelry out of platinum can withstand decades of wear while still retaining its weight and strength. Platinum is less malleable than gold, too. An ounce  can be stretched into a filament a mile long, as compared with gold, which can be stretched 50 miles.

Forsey acknowledges that platinum can be tough to work with because of the high purity (at 95 percent) of the material supplied to watchmakers and jewelry makers. In addition, he says, “Platinum is several times more difficult to machine and … polish than other metals.” At Greubel Forsey, the metal is mostly used to make cases and the clasp; it’s difficult to fashion very small components from platinum, he adds.

Opting for platinum in certain timepieces is primarily an aesthetic choice by his company—and customers, according to Forsey. “Platinum tends to be a bit more restrained than white gold,” he says. “Some collectors like it because it resembles steel in color, while white gold is perhaps a warmer shade and will suit others better.”

Platinum is extracted from underground mines (as deep as a mile or more below the Earth’s surface), mostly in locations also rich in nickel and copper. Its scarcity (30 times more so than gold) adds to its allure for watchmakers as well.

The current high price for gold is not a factor in Greubel Forsey’s decision-making. Forsey says his company’s Unique Edition Platinum GMT with a 5N gold-finished movement is an example, “where the color of the platinum case reinforces the contrast with the finish and architecture of the movement.”

“Traditionally platinum is recognized to be rarer and more exclusive,” Forsey says. “Today, with new compositions of precious metals, for example 18-karat white gold (with a higher content of palladium), these also make very original creations to bring the collector something original.”