Cartier, Paris

Cartier, Paris

New York retailed

A very fine and exceptionally rare yellow gold oval form skeletonised wristwatch, Circa 1973

Dial: skeletonised, blued steel baton hands

Calibre: 9’’’ calibre 969 movement signed Cartier Paris, skeletonised bridges with damascened Côtes de Genève decoration, lever escapement, 18 jewels, annular balance, adjusted to temperature and 3 positions, Breguet balance spring

Movement number: 62'840

Case: 18k yellow gold, broad polished bezel with incised Roman and disc-form hour indexes filled with black enamel, satin finishes case sides, sapphire crystals to front and back, beaded cabochon sapphire-set crown, concealed lugs, sapphire crystal case back with broad gold rim secured by four gold screws, outside case back with French eagle’s head assay mark

Case number: Cartier stamp with New York Subsidiary stock number 028'141, numbered between lugs beneath case top at 6 o’clock with Cartier Paris Reference No. 57'375 and above 12 o’clock 5

Closure: black unsigned leather strap and 18k gold deployant buckle with French assay marks and numbered 25'567, 67

Size: 37.5 mm length x 29 mm width

Signed: case, dial and movement

Accessories: none

Made in circa 1973, this watch dates to a period when traditional watchmaking was increasingly under threat from the advance of the quartz wristwatch. Emphasizing the superior craftsmanship of the fine mechanical watch, the skeletonised movement defiantly separated haute horlogerie from the soulless electrical circuitry of the quartz watch. By placing the movement centre stage, rather than hidden behind a watch’s dial and case back, the mesmerizing intricacy of its mechanics could be fully appreciated. Here the movement plates have been finely cut and shaped to remove as much material as possible, allowing a detailed view of the movement’s mechanics. Exceptionally skilled work, removing so large an area of the movement plates without careful planning and extreme precision would compromise the inherent strength and integrity of the movement itself. Few skeletonised watches manage to so thoroughly reveal a movement’s inner workings. Here not only can the action of the going train, the escapement and the gearing for the hands be clearly observed, but one can also see the action of the hand-setting mechanism and even the coils of the mainspring and its changing condition as it is wound.

The movement can be attributed to Audemars Piguet and their TS calibre. It was during the 1930s that Audemars Piguet perfected their skeletonised movement, illuminating it from either side by pierced the plates and bridges from front to back. Executed by their finest watchmakers, who were specially trained for the task, Audemars Piguet created a calibre that was imbued with a unique sense of lightness and transparency.

With its smooth pebble-like form, the gold case of this watch has a particularly pleasing geomorphic shape. The bezel is broad with incised hour markers. Cartier engraved bezels with hour indexes for decorative reasons in the Art Deco period, yet here it becomes an essential part of the design, as the only available area on which calibrations for time can be shown. A captivating model, the watch effortlessly combines elements of the Art Deco with traditional watchmaking, while simultaneously creating a thoroughly modern 1970s aesthetic.