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Lot Essay
Please note the strap is shown for display purposes only and is not for sale. Upon sale, the watch will be supplied to the buyer on a calf leather strap.
From the family of the original owner, Christie's is delighted to offer this extremely rare and elongated 1972 Cartier London-made Tonneau. For Cartier collectors, timepieces produced in Cartier’s London workshops are beyond desirable. Cartier’s motto 'Never Copy, Only Create' has a particular resonance when considering the extraordinarily creative wristwatches that came out of Cartier’s London workshops in the 1960s and 70s.
Produced in extremely small numbers and almost impossible to obtain, its quasi-mythical status as an instantly recognizable yet highly exclusive Cartier design has assured its eternal allure. Underlining the present watch’s rarity, this shape and size has almost never been seen before by the most astute collectors with seldom appearances at international auction.
1960s and early 70s London was an exciting place to be and Jean-Jacques Cartier, who had instigated the making of Cartier watches in London, wanted to create wristwatches that were truly a response to the spirit of the age. The appearance of the watches that came out of the London workshops, including the ‘Crash’ and the present ‘Tonneau’ were not only avant-garde but positively and deliberately shocking. Their truly head-turning looks being in complete contrast to the traditional conservative round or rectangular wristwatches of the day.
Cartier’s wristwatches made in the London of the swinging 60s and early 70s undoubtedly possess the almost magnetic fascination that is borne from all truly great design and craftsmanship. This gorgeous Tonneau with its fluid elongated curved shape and specially designed dial is an exemplar of what can only be described as “the genius of Cartier”, indeed, the very name Cartier is a byword for the ultimate in luxury. From the dawn of the 20th century the company’s timepieces have wowed the world’s richest and most demanding clientele, not only for their mechanical excellence and ingenuity but most importantly for the perfection and confidence of their design. Original production London-made timepieces from the 1960s and 1970s such as the present watch, signed with the magical ‘Cartier’ script are quite naturally the most desirable of all.
From the family of the original owner, Christie's is delighted to offer this extremely rare and elongated 1972 Cartier London-made Tonneau. For Cartier collectors, timepieces produced in Cartier’s London workshops are beyond desirable. Cartier’s motto 'Never Copy, Only Create' has a particular resonance when considering the extraordinarily creative wristwatches that came out of Cartier’s London workshops in the 1960s and 70s.
Produced in extremely small numbers and almost impossible to obtain, its quasi-mythical status as an instantly recognizable yet highly exclusive Cartier design has assured its eternal allure. Underlining the present watch’s rarity, this shape and size has almost never been seen before by the most astute collectors with seldom appearances at international auction.
1960s and early 70s London was an exciting place to be and Jean-Jacques Cartier, who had instigated the making of Cartier watches in London, wanted to create wristwatches that were truly a response to the spirit of the age. The appearance of the watches that came out of the London workshops, including the ‘Crash’ and the present ‘Tonneau’ were not only avant-garde but positively and deliberately shocking. Their truly head-turning looks being in complete contrast to the traditional conservative round or rectangular wristwatches of the day.
Cartier’s wristwatches made in the London of the swinging 60s and early 70s undoubtedly possess the almost magnetic fascination that is borne from all truly great design and craftsmanship. This gorgeous Tonneau with its fluid elongated curved shape and specially designed dial is an exemplar of what can only be described as “the genius of Cartier”, indeed, the very name Cartier is a byword for the ultimate in luxury. From the dawn of the 20th century the company’s timepieces have wowed the world’s richest and most demanding clientele, not only for their mechanical excellence and ingenuity but most importantly for the perfection and confidence of their design. Original production London-made timepieces from the 1960s and 1970s such as the present watch, signed with the magical ‘Cartier’ script are quite naturally the most desirable of all.