Back when the spring watch shows took place in person, Cartier’s horological presentation was always one of our favourites thanks to the brand’s incredible creativity that would surprise us year after year with the most interesting technical and artistic innovations. This year is no different, and even if we can’t touch and feel the pieces, they are a feast for the eyes.
Cartier Libre Baignoire Tortue
The story of the Cartier Baignoire dates back to 1912 when Louis Cartier first decided to play around with a round case shape by elongating it to form this unique oval, bath-tub shape that was later named the “Baignoire.”
This year, Cartier is reinterpreting the Baignoire inside its Cartier Libre collection, a line that takes the Maison’s signature shaped timepieces and reimagines them using design codes from its archives. The Cartier Libre Baignoire Tortue takes this iconic case shape and turns it into one of the French brand’s favourite animals, the tortoise.
Using a combination of random diamond paving, playful black and anthracite lines, buff-top tsavorites, and sapphires, Cartier creates a striking geometric composition that brings the scales of a tortoise’s shell to life. Limited to 30 pieces, this iconic animal may be known for its slow and steady pace but it keeps perfect time thanks to a quartz movement!
Cartier Tank Must
Yes, you did read that right, Cartier has created a brand-new Tank Must collection that combines both its Tank and Must icons in one watch. With the creation of the Tank in 1917 and the unveiling of the Must in 1977, this new design combines the codes from both historic models. A host of different models are being presented for Watches and Wonders 2021, including these three monochrome models in burgundy, green, or blue with minimalist dials with no Roman numerals or railway tracks.
But it isn’t only the beauty of the Tank Must that is the big news, Cartier is also introducing invisible perforations in the Roman numerals that allow the light to reach photovoltaic cells under the dial that charge the batteries directly. This SolarBeat movement has an average lifespan of 16 years. This pioneering watch also comes with a strap that is made out of 40% plant matter, produced from the waste from apples grown for the food industry.
Cartier Privé
Cartier Privé was designed to be the collectors’ collection with unusual limited-edition watches that break all the traditional codes of watchmaking. Timepieces such as the Crash, the Tank Cintrée, the Tonneau, and the Tank Asymétrique have surprised and delighted the brand’s clients for decades.
This year, Cartier is unveiling the fifth opus in the collection, the Cloche de Cartier. This bell shape, which resembles the type of service bell that often sits on a hotel or shop counter, is not new to Cartier. It first appeared in 1920 but is one of the Maison’s rarer aesthetics. The advantage of the Cloche de Cartier is that it can be read on the wrist, but also removed and placed on a table as a desk clock. Cartier has also developed two new mechanical manual-winding calibres to power these uniquely-shaped timepieces, one of which is beautifully skeletonized.
Ballon Bleu de Cartier
Cartier is unveiling a delightful range of new Ballon Bleu models in a 40 mm case size this year which are powered by a manufacture automatic, the Calibre 1847 MC movement, that comes with a 40-hour power reserve. This 18-karat rose gold model set with 52 brilliant-cut diamonds really stands out. Thanks to an interchangeable strap system, there is also the possibility of pairing it with a large choice of beautifully coloured alligator straps for a variety of entirely different looks.
Pasha de Cartier
Last but not least is the Pasha de Cartier. Relaunched just last year, the collection is now being enhanced with two new designs: a feminine 30mm version and a more masculine 41mm chronograph iteration. The chronograph features a stylish rotating bezel and two pushers and a crown that are adorned with blue cabochons, in keeping with the very first Pasha chronographs from the 1980s. The timepiece is equipped with the brand’s 1904-CH MC Cartier Manufacture movement and comes in a choice of steel or yellow gold. Like the Pasha’s released in 2020, these new models also include the French Maison’s practical QuickSwitch and EasyLink strap/bracelet systems.
