THE WORLD OF F INE WATCHES

SPOTLIGHTTHE MILESTONEWATCHES OFCARTIERPRESENTED BYWATCHTIMEMAGAZINE

CARTIER

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CARTIER

The Milestones

Stages of a colorful history(clockwise): the firm’sfounder, Louis-FrançoisCartier (1819–1904); Alberto Santos-Dumont,Cartier’s first wristwatchcustomer; Cartier cigarettelighter; an advertisementfrom 1988; Cartier’s storein London in 1909; themanufacture caliber fromthe first central chrono-graph (2009); Cartier rings;a modern winding rotormanufactured by Cartier

By GisBert L. Brunner

To those who lovefine jewelry, thename Cartier hasalways represent-ed luxury and thebeautiful things inlife. But there’smore to this brandthan jewelry. As amaker of wrist-watches, Cartierhas been innova-tive in its designsand technologyfor well over acentury. Here wevisit 23 of its mostimportant accom-plishments as awatch brand.

CARTIER:

To those who lovefine jewelry, thename Cartier hasalways represent-ed luxury and thebeautiful things inlife. But there’smore to this brandthan jewelry. As amaker of wrist-watches, Cartierhas been innova-tive in its designsand technologyfor well over acentury. Here wevisit 23 of its mostimportant accom-plishments as awatch brand.

MILESTONESCartier

1904/1911SANTOSJEWELER LOUIS CARTIER (1875–1942) was a perfectionist designer. Whenhe stylistically emancipated the wrist-watch at the beginning of the 20th centu-ry, this type of timepiece was still strug-gling to establish its right to exist. In thisera of pocketwatches, many people, espe-cially men, were simply not interested inwearing watches on their wrists. But ex-ceptions prove the rule, and one such ex-ception was Alberto Santos-Dumont.Born in 1873, this Brazilian bon vivantand his homemade flying machines werethe toast of Parisian high society. In 1904,the pioneering aviator complained to hisfriend Cartier that it wasn’t practical for apilot to consult a pocketwatch while flyingan airplane, and told him he believed hecould set new aviation records if a solutionto this problem could be found. That sameyear, Cartier strapped a new timepiecearound Santos-Dumont’s wrist. Two yearslater, the daredevil pilot, in his motorized“14-bis” aircraft, set new distance recordswhile wearing this square-cased watchwith integrated strap lugs. It didn’t takelong before other high-society types alsowanted to wear “Santos” models on theirwrists. A savvy businessman, Cartier be-gan making a small number of Santoswatches for privileged purchasers in 1908;serial production followed in 1911.

1913/1928TORTUECARTIER UNVEILED the logical exten-sion of the Tonneau in 1913. Unlike itselongated predecessor, this new model hada more compact shape and could accom-modate round movements with larger di-ameters. The new watch was appropriate-ly christened the “Tortue” because it re-minded people of a tortoise. Like the San-tos, it had integrated strap lugs that clever-ly extended the case’s arcing flanks. Start-ing in 1928, Cartier equipped this watchwith an ultra-slim monopusher chrono-graph movement: LeCoultre, the ébauchespecialist, had premiered its 11-ligneébauche 11 JCCV one year previously in1927. The European Watch and ClockCo. delivered the completely assembledmovement. Automaker Edsel Ford wasamong the many wearers of this innova-tive chronograph.

1906TONNEAUAT THE BEGINNING of the 20th centu-ry, wristwatches began differentiatingthemselves from pocketwatches by bid-ding adieu to traditional round cases.Fashion-oriented women, to whom thewristwatch owes its genesis, were becom-ing bored with round timepieces. Recog-nizing the tremendous potential, Cartierin 1906 presented a barrel-shaped watchand called it the “Tonneau,” French forbarrel. Thanks to its cleverly designedcurvature, the case conformed to the con-tours of its wearer’s wrist. The model pic-tured dates from 1907.

1917/1919TANKLOUIS CARTIER MADE another impor-tant contribution to the rise of the wrist-watch during World War I. His designconcept was sparked by the modern com-bat tanks that English troops deployed inthe Battle of the Somme in 1916. Cartierwas so impressed by their martial appear-ance that he used it as the template for awristwatch, released in 1917, with a rec-tangular case and elongated flanks. Ed-mond Jaeger contributed to its creation.The following year, to express his grati-tude for the liberation of France, Cartiergave the first few of these watches to Gen-eral John Joseph Pershing, supreme com-mander of American troops in France, andto other high-ranking officers in the U.S.Army. These military men could takepleasure in the exclusivity of their newwristwatches for only one year, however,because serial production of the Tank be-gan in 1919.

MILESTONESCartier

1921TANK CINTRÉETHANKS IN PART TO Louis Cartier’scontributions, the wristwatch grew inpopularity. Between 1906 and 1918 alone,his store on Rue de la Paix in Paris sold al-most as many wristwatches as all othertimekeepers combined: customers bought2,789 wristwatches, compared to 3,119pendant and brooch watches, pocket-watches and table clocks. The unconven-tional Tank was one of the best sellers, andCartier created a new evolution of thismodel in the early 1920s: he stretched thesquare case into an elongated rectangleand gave it an attractive and practical cur-vature so that the watch, despite its overalllength of more than 45 mm, was verycomfortable to wear. The narrowness ofthe case imposed strict limits on the di-mensions of its hand-wound movement,which was supplied by the EuropeanWatch and Clock Co. The dancer and ac-tor Fred Astaire famously numberedamong the wearers of the Tank Cintrée.

1922CLOCHEUNVEILED IN 1922 and repeatedlymodified in ensuing years, the Clocheattracted particular attention thanks toits asymmetric case, which was shapedlike a church bell. The Cloche (Frenchfor “bell”) was usually made only byspecial request. Two versions wereavailable: the case of the first versionwas connected to its upper strap by a

1928TANK ÀGUICHETSFOR CENTURIES, time displays had auniversal design: hands rotating above afixed dial. Eventually, innovative watch-makers invented timepieces that indicatedthe hours and minutes digitally, via printeddisks rotating beneath windows in the di-al. The fronts of these watches’ cases couldnow be made almost entirely of metal, sowatchmakers could dispense with thelarge, flat and shatter-prone glass crystals.The small apertures were also made ofglass, but small enough to withstand thehard knocks they’d encounter during vig-orous sports. Cartier released the Tank àGuichets in 1928. This rectangular watchwas aimed primarily at customers whoregularly subjected their wristwatches torough treatment, so Cartier positioned thevulnerable crown between the two upperstrap lugs, where it was best protectedagainst impacts. The model shown herewas sold to Sir Bhupinder Singh, the ma-haraja of the former Indian principality ofPatiala.

JUST ONE YEAR after the debut of theTank Cintrée, Cartier launched the nextversion of his rectangular watch. To ac-centuate the square shape of the originalmodel, the two horizontal bars above andbelow the dial were lengthened to extend

beyond the case’s flanks. This design ele-ment called to mind the portals of Chinesetemples, so the new model – which con-tained a 9-ligne, hand-wound movement –was given the name “Tank Chinoise” soonafterward.

single lug at 12 o’clock and surroundeda conventional dial; in the second ver-sion, the case and dial were turned 90percent to the right. When the lattermodel was taken off the wrist, it couldstand by itself, with one flat flankdownward, atop a desk or nightstand.The version shown here, with verticallyoriented case, was built in 1925.

1922TANK CHINOISE

MILESTONESCartier

NEEDLESS TO SAY, water resistance wasan important topic at Cartier in the late1920s and early ’30s, when society’s uppercrust vacationed at the Côte d’Azur andother seaside spots. Rolex made its mark inthis area in 1926, when patent protectionwas granted to its water-resistant Oystercase. In 1931, Cartier and its watchmakingpartner Jaeger set out to create a rectangu-lar watch case with a similar level of water-resistance. It was much more difficult, ofcourse, to develop an insulating system

that would prevent water from penetratingat the sharp corners of a non-circular case.To fully protect the movement, models likethis baguette watch from 1931 were givenan additional locking system for the manu-al-winding components. One particularlyprestigious customer who ordered a time-piece of this type from Cartier in the mid-1930s was the Pasha of Marrakesh, whowanted a wristwatch that he wouldn’tneed to remove before taking a dip in hisswimming pool.

DURING THE ROARING TWENTIES,the active lifestyles of Cartier’s deep-pock-eted clientele posed enormous challengesfor the brand. Shattered crystals, brokendials, and hands that fell off their staffswere common problems. In 1926, Cartierapplied for a patent to protect the intellec-tual property of its case-cum-bracelet con-struction in which the crystal spent mostof its life facing safely toward the wrist,but could also be briefly pivoted into fullview whenever the wearer wanted to readthe time. The system was simple but notentirely practical, so Cartier and his expe-rienced partner Jaeger went back to thedrawing board. Spécialité Horlogères SAwas granted a patent in 1932 for a caseconstruction with a clever tilting mecha-nism, which was incorporated into awatch called the “Tank Basculante” (“bas-

1922TANK BASCULANTE

1931WATER-RESISTANT WATCHES

culante” is French for “rocking”). Thenew system let the watch’s wearer rotatethe case through 180 degrees, thus quicklyputting the watch’s covered dial againstthe wrist and out of harm’s way when, forexample, its wearer played a round of golf.

1943/1985PASHACARTIER STARTED OFFERING watch-es with water-resistant cases in the 1930s,but their insulating systems were so com-plex that the protection they offered lastedonly a relatively short time. AlthoughLouis Cartier died in 1942, his namesakebrand continued to strive for technical in-novation and design evolution. Realizingthat it was easier to ensure and sustain wa-ter-reistance in a round case, Cartierlaunched a round, gold model with centralstrap lugs and a screwed back in 1943.The crown had a protective locking mech-anism that could be screwed shut after theowner had used the crown to wind thewatch or set its hands. To prevent the lossof this protective cap, a small chain kept itsafely attached to the case. The crystal wascovered with a grille that resembled thoseon military wristwatches from the WorldWar I era. Incidentally, the claim that thiswatch was created to fill an order placedby the Pasha of Marrakesh is nothingmore than an oft-repeated fairytale. Notuntil 1985, when Cartier began serialmanufacturing of this model, was it giventhis name, though the Pasha was amongCartier’s foremost aficionados in his day.

ANOTHER LEGEND SURROUNDS thecreation of Cartier’s “Crash” model,which has a case that looks as though ithad been smashed in a serious automo-bile accident. Although its bizarre ap-pearance prompted would-be connois-seurs to nickname it the “Dalí,” theSpanish surrealist painter (one of whose

most famous works depicted limp, mis-shaped and “melting” watches) hadnothing whatsoever to do with the cre-ation of this wristwatch. Cartier pro-duced only 15 pieces of the Crash in the1960s. A second edition was added in the1980s, followed by a limited edition of400 gold watches in 1991.

1960s/1986/1991CRASH

MILESTONESCartier

CARTIER’S WATCH division was hithard when the brand split into threehouses (Paris, London and New York). Asmall revolution was the only solution.When Alain-Dominique Perrin joinedCartier Paris in 1969, he and then-presi-dent Robert Hocq set out to revitalize thebusiness. In 1973, Perrin presented the“Les Must de Cartier” concept, whichwas intended to take into account the on-going societal upheaval and the resultingchange in the public’s attitude towardluxury goods. Twelve different watchmodels, initially available only in solidgold cases, were sold only in Cartier’s“Must” boutiques and at selected jewel-ry stores. The new concept was success-ful and Perrin was promoted to the post

AS LATE AS 1998, Alain-Dominique Per-rin, who had since been promoted to pres-ident of Cartier, was still focusing more onhis watches’ external design than on theirmovements. This began to change in 2002with Cartier’s re-release of the Tortuemonopusher. First unveiled in 1928, thishistorical chronograph had become a col-lectors’ item. For its 21st-century re-issue,Cartier did not settle for a run-of-the-mill

1973/1976LES MUST DE CARTIER

CARTIER DECIDED to launch a sportyversion of the Tortue in 2001. With adate magnifier that extended over thecrown, the first Roadster wed traditionwith modernity. Cartier followed it upwith the release of a chronograph versionin 2003. The watch was equipped withan ETA automatic movement and threeinterchangeable wristbands: a steelbracelet, a calfskin strap, and a sailclothstrap. As one would expect of a watch in-spired by motorsports, its dial isequipped with a tachymeter scale thatworks with the elapsed-seconds hand toenable its wearer to quickly calculate av-erage speeds.

2003ROADSTER CHRONOGRAPH

2002TORTUE MONOPOUSSOIRof Must’s CEO in 1973. Meanwhile,

Cartier’s U.S. subsidiary had since 1971been selling a less expensive, gold-platedversion of the Tank for $150 via a net-work of somewhat dubious dealers. Thistarnished the brand’s image, which wasfurther harmed in 1976 by the suddenappearance of large numbers of counter-feits. When the New York subsidiary re-joined the Cartier family, Perrin put astop to the questionable practice, butwasn’t willing to abandon Cartier’sflourishing business in America. His so-lution was the new Tank Must de Carti-er, a watch with a gold-plated silver case,manufactured in two different sizes andselling for the relatively low price of$500. The watch was a huge success.

TO FOLLOW UP the success of the TankMust de Cartier, Robert Hocq and Alain-Dominique Perrin began developing an-other new model that would meld Carti-er’s easily recognizable design with asoupçon of sportiness. They found theideal candidate in the Santos. Until thatpoint, that model had been available on-ly in precious-metal cases. But Cartier’snew philosophy of affordable luxury in-spired a strategic rethinking. The first

1978SANTOS SPORT

Santos Sport featured a steel case andbracelet, a golden bezel, and an eye-catch-ing design highlighted by the prominentlyslit heads of numerous screws. Thiswatch, with its automatic movement, wasa hit, and soon distinguished itself as onethe world’s most popular luxury wrist-watches. This model’s design, and its in-teresting history, prompted the Musée del’Air et de l’Espace in Paris to put thewatch on display.

mechanical movement. Lacking its owndevelopmental capabilities, the brandturned to the specialists at TechniquesHorlogèrs Appliquées SA (THA) inSainte-Croix, Switzerland, who designeda column-wheel caliber that was a mere3.8 mm thick. Like its predecessor fromLeCoultre in 1928, hand-wound Caliber045 has a diameter of 24.8 mm. Cartierholds all legal rights to it.

MILESTONESCartier

2004SANTOS 100IN 1904, when Louis Cartier presented theSantos as the first watch conceived specif-ically for the wrist, large wristwatches, likethose of today, were nearly a century in thefuture. Small, fine, and, above all, elegantwere the watch words. Cartier manufac-tured only about 800 pieces of the Santosup through 1973. But the number of unitsbegan a steady climb starting in 1978. Tocelebrate the 100th anniversary of the San-tos, Cartier unveiled the impossible-to-overlook Santos 100, with its generous di-mensions of 42 by 51 millimeters, straplugs included. The movement is the reli-able ETA 2892, which is produced in largeseries. The case is made of steel or gold ora combination of both metals.

2008SANTOS TRIPLE 100CARTIER HAS ALWAYS given ample at-tention to its watch dials; after all, the diala customer chooses is the one he or shewill have to live with for life, right? Not inthe case of the Santos Triple 100, intro-duced in 2008. This watch’s appeal derivesnot only from its white-gold case, adornedwith numerous gemstones, but also fromits unusual trilogy of dials. Thanks tomoveable prisms, a simple turn of thecrown is all it takes to change from theclassical Cartier look with Roman numer-als, to a second dial totally encrusted withdiamonds and sapphires, to a third dialwith a portrait of a tiger. Another Santos

2007BALLONBLEU DECARTIERCARTIER HAS always been known forits watches with nontraditional (i.e., notround) cases, but the brand introducedits own distinctive take on the roundwatch with the introduction of the Bal-lon Bleu in 2007. Bernard Fornas, presi-dent of Cartier until 2012, called the Bal-lon Bleu his brand’s most successfulwatch, and said he regarded it as an icon-ic model on a par with the Santos and theTank. Like many other timepieces inCartier’s history, the Ballon Bleu is con-sidered a unisex model. However, 70 per-cent of all Ballon Bleu watches are wornby women.

WITH THE ROTONDE de Cartier Cen-tral Chronograph, Cartier’s designersand watchmakers found a way to solve aproblem that besets conventionalchronographs: namely, a chronograph’slegibility is less than ideal because itshands sometimes overlap one another.On this watch, the hands that indicatethe time never obscure the chronographhands because the displays are posi-tioned on different levels. The lowest lev-

2009ROTONDE CENTRAL CHRONOGRAPH

el is exclusively for the hours and min-utes; the middle is reserved for theelapsed chronograph minutes, which aredigitally indicated on a disk; and the toplevel displays only the blue chronographseconds hand. All this is made possibleby Cartier’s in-house column-wheel Cal-iber 9907 MC, which is 25.6 mm in di-ameter, 7.1 mm thick, manually wound,and equipped with an energy-saving fric-tion coupling.

100 in a somewhat less glamorous tripleversion debuted soon afterward. It invitesits owner to choose between a black dial, awhite dial, or a view into the skeletonizedmanufacture Caliber 9611 MC. In this in-stance, the case is made of palladium.

MILESTONESCartier

THE ROTONDE de Cartier Astrotourbil-lon was one of the brand’s highlights of2010. Its hand-wound movement runsfor 48 hours without re-winding. Caliber9451 MC is 38 mm in diameter and 9mm thick. The balance oscillates at asteady pace of 3 Hz while simultaneous-ly completing one orbit around the dialevery minute, thus serving as a secondshand. In this way, the unconventionaltourbillon does double duty. Five yearswere invested in the developmentalwork. The Rotonde’s gold case is 47 mmin diameter.

2010ROTONDE ASTROTOURBILLON

TO MAKE ITS MARK in thecompetitive men’s watchmarket, Cartier needed a

wristwatch with a boldly mas-culine touch. And that is precise-

ly what the brand presented in2010 when it unveiled the Calibre de

Cartier at the SIHH in Geneva. To en-sure the watch had no connection tofemininity, Cartier then-presidentBernard Fornas issued an executive or-der instructing the saleswomen at Carti-er’s approximately 300 boutiquesaround the globe never to wear this

watch while serving customers; onlymale sales staff could wear the Calibrewhile at work. The exclusive, automaticCaliber 1904 PS MC indicates the sec-onds on a subdial and the date in a des-ignated window. Two barrels combineto provide about 48 hours of power re-serve. Cartier hoped that this powerfulmovement would attract potential malecustomers to buy their first Cartierwatch. The Calibre de Cartier collectionhas since expanded, with new modelsthat have included a tourbillon and achronograph.

2010CALIBRE DE CARTIER

THE MOST IMPRESSIVE features ofthis watch are ensconced inside its 50-mm-diameter case, which is light inweight but high in performance becauseit’s crafted from an alloy of titanium andniobium. Four patents protect the mech-anism, which is not a tourbillon but nev-ertheless compensates for the effects ofgravity on the movement. The fruit offive years of development, its oscillatingand escapement system, which is inher-ently susceptible to positional changes, isborne atop a rotor with a heavy platinumsegment. Because of its heavy weight, therotor always falls toward the Earth’s cen-ter, so fine adjustment in the hanging po-sition was required only in one positionrather than in the usual four. The techni-cal effort that resulted in this solutionwas significant. An intelligent systemwith two differential gear-trains compen-sates for the relative velocities generatedby the to-and-fro motions of the escape-ment assembly. The bipartite scale forthe seconds also moves along with therest of the assembly so the two-armedseconds hand will always indicate thecorrect time. The twin mainsprings re-ceive energy from the rotor in both its di-rections of rotation. After these springsare fully wound, the watch will continueto run for approximately 80 hours. Theentire movement requires about fivetimes as many components as a classicaltourbillon.

2011ROTONDE ASTRORÉGULATEUR