Only five Cartier Cheich watches are known to exist, and one of them is currently missing.
The Cartier Cheich was never offered for sale in Cartier boutiques. In the 1980s, Cartier partnered with the legendary Paris-Dakar Rally to create the Cartier Challenge: any competitor who won the grueling 10,000-kilometre race in consecutive years would receive, in place of a conventional trophy, a watch inspired by the Cheich, the iconic desert headscarf worn by the Tuareg people. The result was one of the rarest and most distinctive watches ever created by Cartier.
The Cheich will be offered in the upcoming Important Watches Auction in Sotheby's Hong Kong, presented in partnership with Marriott Luxury Group.
