Top 15 Facts About Cartier – Interesting Things to Know
Cartier is one of the most well-known, prestigious, and reputable luxury jewelry and watch companies in the world. Chances are that when a lot of people think about a luxury brand, they think about Cartier.
Cartier is most known for its jewelry such as the Cartier Love bracelet or the Juste un Clou bracelet. But Cartier is a huge corporation that makes a lot of different luxury objects, from necklaces to wristwatches, to pens and sunglasses. In recent years, Cartier has made some of the world’s most iconic wristwatches and in recent years, Cartier’s watches have received a huge upswing in popularity thanks to a revised and updated watch collection.
Due to its legendary status and iconic position in the luxury industry, Cartier is responsible for driving the luxury market and has influenced it in many different ways. But like all brands, Cartier has not always been as well-known and respected as it is today. This journey has been long and filled with events. And in this article, we are digging deep into the history of Cartier, the brand, and its products. Let’s look closer at some of the most interesting facts about Cartier.
Top interesting facts about Cartier
1. The Cartier Trinity rings were designed in 1924
The Cartier Trinity is one of the most popular and iconic designs from Cartier. It was initially designed in the form of rings but has been expanded to include other products like bracelets and necklaces as well. The trinity is designed with three different rings in gold of different colors, including rose gold, white gold, and yellow gold. The iconic Trinity was designed in 1924 by Jean Cocteau who is a famous French painter and writer. The three rings in the Trinity design represent love, friendship, and fidelity.
2. Cartier was ranked the 58th most valuable brand in the world by Forbes magazine in 2016
This doesn’t come as a surprise considering the worldwide recognition of its brand and its strong presence all around the world. Cartier was estimated to be worth $10.1 billion and had total sales of $6.1 billion with 286 worldwide locations that year.
3. Cartier developed a new gem-setting technique for its Panthere design to resemble the texture of fur
The Cartier Panthere design is one of the most iconic and well-known designs from the brand. And in developing this new design, Cartier developed a new way of gem-setting to make the surface resemble the fur of a Panther. This gem-setting technique is known as fur setting and means that diamonds are set in a honeycomb lattice featuring small and thin wires of gold. To resemble the spots of the fur of the panther, Cartier uses onyx and sapphire gemstones.
4. The Cartier Crash watch was invented by accident
The Cartier Crash is one of the most iconic watch designs from Cartier. And the story of how the design came about is a really interesting one.
The owner of a Cartier watch brought it back to Cartier after he had been in a car accident. The Cartier had been completely misshaped and damaged and the owner hoped to get help with restoring it.
When Jean-Jacques saw the watch, he had a genius idea. He decided to replicate the crooked design of the damaged watch and in 1967, he began selling the first Cartier Crash as a limited edition. The watch quickly became a huge success and today, it is considered one of the most attractive and sought-after wristwatches from Cartier. The name of the model is of course highly suitable for the model and its inspiration.
5. Alfred Cartier became the first to use platinum in jewelry-making
Today, platinum is a common material found in luxury jewelry and watches. It often means extremely expensive creations. But the material hasn’t always been used in jewelry.
In the 19th century, platinum was primarily used by royalty for cutlery and similar objects. Due to the high melting point of platinum, it was extremely difficult to work with. However, Alfred Cartier began experimenting with platinum for his creations and when he successfully managed to use this material in 1847, it was an important achievement for the brand and for the jewelry industry as a whole.
Platinum is appreciated for its luster, brilliance, and strong properties. Alfred Cartier started using platinum for his Garland Style creations.
6. The Love bracelet is inspired by medieval chastity belts
Today, the Cartier Love bracelet is unarguably one of the most iconic bracelets and pieces of jewelry ever created. It can be seen worn by people from all over the world and chances are, you’ll be able to see someone wearing it wherever you may be.
The design of the Cartier Love Bracelet was the idea of Also Cipullo who designed the bracelet in 1969. The bracelet was inspired by medieval chastity belts. At the time, the chastity belts were used as a form of underwear to prevent the wearer from having sex. The belts were used by women during the Crusades so that they would preserve their faithfulness to their husbands whilst they were off to fight. Historians estimate that these were used in the 16th century but not widespread.
Nevertheless, Also Cipullo took his inspiration from these belts and designed a creation that was meant to symbolize love, devotion, and fidelity.
The Love Bracelet stands out from most other bracelets because it has a locking mechanism with screws and is not meant to be taken off. This is to symbolize the locking of love as the significant other is meant to have the screwdriver so only they can open it.
Today, the Cartier Love Bracelet is one of their most iconic and popular creations.
7. New York City hospitals keep screwdrivers for the Love Bracelet
Because of the huge popularity of the Love Bracelet, New York City hospitals make sure to keep screwdrivers for the bracelet so that they can remove the bracelets from the patients’ wrists during emergencies. This goes to show just how popular these bracelets truly are.
8. Cartier was saved from bankruptcy thanks to a private jewelry collection
Cartier was in a financial crisis after France’s defeat in the Franco-Prussian war that took place between 1870 and 1871. Their aristocratic clients escaped or went into exile which saw business declining for Cartier.
When La Barucci died, Alfred Cartier contacted her heirs and offered to sell all of her jewels which were worth several hundred thousand francs in exchange for a five percent commission in England, a country that had been unaffected by the war. This helped save Cartier from going bankrupt.
9. Cartier popularized the wristwatch for men
When it comes to wristwatches, men primarily used pocket watches at the end of the 1800s and at the beginning of the 1900s. Wristwatches just started to appear on the market but at the time, they were small and reserved for women as pieces of jewelry.
However, Cartier is responsible for having popularized the wristwatch for men. A friend of Louis Cartier, the Brazilian aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont explained the difficulty of using a pocket watch to record flight times. Louis set out to solve this issue and created the Santos wristwatch. Santos-Dumont used the watch on his flights and due to his great achievements in aviation, the wristwatch quickly increased in popularity and helped highlight the fact that men could also wear wristwatches.
What’s more, the Cartier Santos is a model that still exists today and one that is extremely popular. Its history and historical importance naturally also play an important role in helping establish its legendary status.
10. The Panthere appeared before Jeanne Toussaint invented it
Jeanne Toussaint is known to have been the woman who invented the iconic Panthere Cartier design. Cartier writes “A designer who risked it all and invented the Panthère, the pioneering director of a great jewelry Maison.” She became the Artistic Director of High Jewelry from 1933 to 1970.
Whilst she is credited for inventing the Panthere design, records have actually been found from earlier which shows that Cartier looked at panthers for inspiration for designs earlier than that.
Panthers appeared on various objects from Cartier in around 1917 which was before her time. Moreover, panthers appeared in the sketchbooks of Charles Jacqueau who was one of Cartier’s early designers.
11. The most expensive Cartier jewelry sold at auction for $30,335,698
In May 2015, the Cartier Sunrise Ruby sold at Sotheby’s auction for a staggering $30,335,698.
This gem is the most expensive ruby, the most expensive non-gemstone, and the most expensive colored gemstone in the world. The Cartier Sunrise Ruby is a 25.6-carat Burmese ruby.
12. Pierre Cartier purchased a six-story building in New York with a pearl necklace
Pierre Cartier purchased a six-story building on the corner of 5th Avenue and 52nd Street from the millionaire Morton Plant with a pearl necklace and $100 from Morton. The betrothed of the million Morton Plant had been stunned by the natural pearls by Cartier and they decided to make a deal to exchange the building for the necklace.
Interestingly enough, when Mrs. Maisie Plant died, the iconic pearl necklace was sold, but only for $150,000. It’s safe to say that Cartier got a real bargain. The building is still in Cartier’s possession and was relatively recently renovated. Today, the building is said to be worth billions of dollars.
13. A mistress of Louis Cartier became the artistic director of high jewelry
Louis Cartier spent a lot of time at Maxim’s, a Parisian hotspot which was a place where wealthy men met their mistresses. Louis met the love of his life there, Jeanne Toussaint. Toussaint’s friend Coco Chanel warned her about his playboy reputation but she fell for him. They remained lovers for some time but Louis’ family disapproved of her and in 1924, Louis married Jacqueline Almásy, a Hungarian countess instead. In 1933, Jeanne Toussaint became the artistic director of high jewelry for Cartier and built a legacy for herself with her iconic and important Cartier creations.
14. The first Cartier Mystery Clock was sold to J.P Morgan for $3,200
The Cartier Mystery Clock was designed by Maurice Couet in 1913 and was a truly special creation. It features floating hour and minute hands which is achieved by mounting the hands to a transparent rock crystal. They were then set with diamonds and gemstones to create true works of art.
The iconic Financier J.P Morgan acquired the first Myster Clock which was shaped like a temple in 1929. The clock was put up for auction in 1993 where it sold for a staggering $1.5 million.
15. Louis Cartier was dubbed the Jeweler of kings and king of jewelers by King Edward VII of England
Over the course of its history, Cartier has had many famous and prestigious clients including royalty from all over the world. The niece of Napoleon I purchased a Cartier for the first time in 1856, and the wide of Napoleon III, Empress Eugenie became a client of the brand in 1859.
In 1904, Cartier became the official purveyor to King Edward VIII. Cartier would continue to deliver items to royalty all around the world including to King Fouad I of Egypt and King Carlos I of Portugal amongst many others.
