alt Hacker NewsYou're being sarcastic, but aren't you accidentally right? Swiss watchmaking started because local bible-thumpers banned jewelry but made an exception for watches, thus creating demand for watches that fill the role of jewelry. Once established, the industry maintains itself.
Except mechanical watches were very high-tech at the time and were very practical devices.
By the time they became mainly an accessory/status symbol sumptuary laws weren’t a thing.