Audemars Piguet – Royal Oak Extra-Thin
Welcome to the latest installment in our Price of Entry Collection. In this aBlogtoWatch feature, we examine different brands through the lens of their most affordable model. Having looked at the entry-level offerings of Rolex, Omega, Panerai, and Hublot… today, a title renowned even far outside the world of watches: Cartier. And none other than the legendary Tank, in the form of this Cartier Tank Solo XL Automatic, represents the very economical mechanical men’s watch Cartier provides, at around US$3,500. The question is, however, what you get together with all the Cartier Tank Solo XL Automatic and how well it represents the brand.We do not need to tell you that Cartier is among the world’s most well-known luxury brands. While I love to approach this show as a new study rather than as how to buy to a prestigious name for the least quantity of money possible… Cartier’s prestige and recognizability are undeniably a massive draw for a great many individuals around the world. Cartier has attained an incredibly cohesive identity and consistency across a vast range of goods, but where does the Cartier Tank Solo XL fit into this? In this guide, we want to check at what exactly the Cartier Tank Solo XL offers in terms of value, history, horological interest, style, and that more vague quality that is Cartier character. The Cartier Tank turning 100 years old in 2017 also makes it timely to revisit its narrative that is a huge area of the watch we’re considering today.Founded at Paris, France, by Louis-François Cartier in 1847, Cartier as a firm is going to be 170 years old in 2017, but is no longer a tiny family-run jeweler, of course. The three grandsons of the founder were Louis, Pierre, and Jacques, and collectively they oversaw Cartier’s growth to be a globally recognized name – Louis function as most fundamental to our narrative. The following Cartier creation, the children of the three brothers, sold the business from the 1970s into an investor group. And lastly in 2012, Cartier joined the Richemont Group in which it resides today among illustrious colleagues of haute horlogerie.
To commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the first Royal Oak Extra-Thin in yellow gold, Audemars Piguet is reintroducing the iconic reference 15202 this year. This new version of the Royal Oak Extra-Thin is faithful to the original model, picking up the traditional 39 mm diameter and following the aesthetic codes that have helped to cement the collection’s timeless reputation. So we see the familiar octagonal bezel with its eight hexagonal screws, the petite tapisserie guilloché dial and the bracelet seamlessly integrated into the case with its perfectly calculated combination of graduated links. Inside, the new Royal Oak Extra-Thin is equipped with the extra-thin self-winding manufacture calibre 2121, which made its debut 50 years ago.
Cartier – Panthère de Cartier
The Panthère de Cartier Watches Quality Replica watch, born in 1983 and withdrawn from the catalogue in 2004, made its big comeback to the SIHH in January. And it doesn’t look a day older. Its aesthetic codes are identical to those of the 1980s, with its square case, screwed bezel, Roman numerals and minutes track. The timepiece pays homage to the feline grace of the panther, one of Cartier’s signature motifs, its flexible articulated bracelet recalling the fluid motions of the beast as it prowls through the jungle. The Panthère, both a watch and an item of jewellery, comes in two sizes (22 mm and 27 mm) in yellow or rose gold, steel or two-tone, with optional gem-setting and a quartz movement.
Jaeger-LeCoultre – Rendez-Vous Night & Day Medium
Five years after the launch of the Rendez-Vous, Jaeger-LeCoultre is enriching the collection with a number of new references. A selection of feminine complications, a wide range of materials and neutral and iridescent hues confirm the timeless style of this elegant collection with its Art Deco accents. This year, yellow gold makes its debut in the Rendez-Vous Night & Day Medium 34 mm. The precious metal appears almost to melt into the skin as it gracefully envelops the contours of the plain bezel, elegant lugs and understated clasp. The silvered dial is embellished with an elegant guilloché motif, accentuating the brilliance of the bezel. The watch conceals the finely-worked wheels of a self-winding mechanical movement, the Jaeger-LeCoultre calibre 898A/1, which is produced, assembled and finished by hand.
Van Cleef & Arpels – Bouton d’Or watch
In 2016 Van Cleef & Arpels unveiled Bouton d’Or, a jewellery line inspired by the paillette motif created by the Parisian jeweller in the late 1930s. This year at the SIHH, Van Cleef & Arpels presented the Bouton d’Or watch, a symphony of circles and sunny highlights. All the sparkles culminate in a concave dial paved with diamonds.
With its overlapping beads of gold studded with diamonds, the timepiece captures the three-dimensionality and visual depth of the collection as a whole. In order to ensure the bracelet remains flexible, several dozen separate elements are fitted together, with an overlapping row of sequins down the centre.
