A 1914 Tonneau Watch sold by Cartier London
There’s been a lot of excitement about vintage Cartier watches lately. Of course, vintage is not always a v. precise term: in Cartier’s case, it spans over 100 years (the first wristwatches for men were produced right at the start of the 20th century). Which is why I was so intrigued to see this particularly early example come up @fellowsauctions this week: a tonneau sold in London in Oct 1914, when my great-grandfather, #JacquesTheoduleCartier, ran the 175 New Bond St branch.
The #tonneau (translates as ‘barrel’) was one of Cartier’s earliest ever models, first created in 1906. That’s a year before Cartier signed a contract with watchmaker #EdmondJaeger (promising him annual orders equivalent to $1m today) and over a decade before the creation of the iconic Tank. Interestingly this watch doesn’t have a sapphire winder but, even at this very early stage, it shares the same numbering quirk on the dial that continues to this day, where the roman numeral ‘IV’ is replaced with the ‘IIII’; an important detail for the symmetry-loving Cartiers as it ensured a better balance with the ‘VIII’.
This watch would have been made under #LouisJosephCartier in Paris and shipped across the Channel for sale in the London showroom (#CartierLondon didn’t have its own workshop until the 1920s). It was then gifted to a Scottish Captain going off to fight at the Western Front with his Highland regiment in May 1915 (the inscription - 2nd image - reads “A.D. Thomson, 51st High Div., 1/5/15”). Meanwhile, Jacques Cartier, fighting in the French cavalry, had just weeks earlier been gassed in the trenches on the Western Front. Which makes this watch all the more poignant for me: a link between him and the Scottish Captain joined in the common fight against their enemies.
Fortunately, both Jacques and the captain would survive the war…as would this #cartierwatch . I love how old and worn it looks today; not just a miniature working (yes it still works) work of art but also such an evocative piece of history that tells a story of those who made it, sold it and wore it.
