Enigmatic
Mystery clocks make up an entire chapter of Cartier history and are a genuine enigma. What allows the hands to float in the centre of a dial that is totally transparent? Where are the mechanisms and the movement?
These “miracles of timekeeping”, as they were called by the fashion magazine La Gazette du Bon Ton in 1925, are the fruit of collaboration between Louis Cartier and an exceptional clockmaker, Maurice Coüet. The latter took his inspiration from the clocks of the famous illusionist and Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, father of modern magic.
The principle, which he adapted and developed, is based on an ingenious concept: the hands are not directly linked to the movement, but are attached to two crystal discs fitted with serrated metal edges. Activated by the movement, which is usually housed in the clock’s base, these discs then turn the hands, one for the minutes hand and the other for the hours hand. So that the illusion is perfect, the edges of the discs are concealed by the hour circle.
To mark the 2014 edition of Watches & Wonders, Cartier perpetuates this timekeeping miracle by replacing the transparency of rock crystal with the brilliance of natural topaz. The abstract appearance and design of this unique timepiece is reinforced by Cartier through the use of contrasting materials in the form of silver obsidian, onyx and opaque ruby.
Pages
Click here to see the published article.
