Cartier Santos Carrée Ref. 2960 - 'Swiss' Dial

The Cartier Santos is widely regarded as — wait for it....

...one of the very first wrist watches. Full stop. 

Predating the more iconic Tank Louis by nearly two decades, the first Santos can trace its roots all the way back to circa 1904 when one Mr. Cartier provided his friend and pilot, Alberto Santos Dumont, a timepiece to be worn on the wrist, rather than kept in a pocket. The Santos is fascinating from a historical perspective in that it was not only the first wristwatch designed to be worn by a male, but also the first pilot's watch.

Like so many icons, the Santos went on to see many variations, utilizing different sizes, movements, dials, and strap designs throughout its now 120-year of production. In the late 1970s, there were multiple variants available at the same time — one of which was faithful to the original design with a thin case profile, a manually-wound calibre, and came fitted to a leather strap — while another piece was introduced with an integrated bracelet, an automatic-winding movement, and featured a variety of dial options. 

The Santos that we have here is one of the latter, a Reference 2960 dating to circa the 1980s known as a Santos 'Carrée.' Around this time, the Santos Dumont was also in production and was largely a continuation of the original Santos in that it was fitted to a leather strap and was rather thin in profile.

This example comes to us in honest overall condition. The case and matching integrated bracelet have seen a light previous polishing earlier in life, and now shows normal signs of wear throughout. The factory case proportions and lines remain healthy and have been respected, and there is some factory finishing still visible. Inside, the white enamel 'Swiss' dial has developed a gentle and attractive off-white patina and remains clean. There are a few very faint horizontal hairline fractures visible under inspection with a loupe. The correct steel 'sword' hands and sapphire cabochon crown are also present and accounted for.

If you're keen to dip your feet into the world of Cartier, but the more fragile pieces aren't speaking to you, this might just be the perfect alternative.