The Hong Kong Watch Auction: TWO | Page 421

This lady's unusual jewelry time piece features a delicate
engine-turned guilloché and deep purple enamel pearform pendant watch. By turning the upper portion of the
pendant, one winds the watch mechanism. The pendant
is preserved in excellent condition, considering its age.
There seems to be no signs of repair, which is really quite
astounding. The enamel displays a beautiful and rich
tone, yet appears almost translucent in places, which
gives the pendant a very three-dimensional appearance.
Cartier innovated a specific form of enamel process,
which involved a special heating to achieve variations
in colour that are illustrated in the present pear-form
pendant watch. This technique evolved into a very
important design element that Cartier seeked to master.
Further highlighting the present form watch, are intricate
diamond-set floral motifs wrapped around the base. This
technique demonstrates the garland style that Cartier
promoted to the Russian market. They mastered this
technique, which differentiated their creations from their
main competitor Fabergé. This time-consuming and very
delicate work is also known as Garland or Louis XVI style.
The top of the pendant is embellished with a platinum and
diamond-set leaf design, which is incredibly intricate.
The necklace is suspended from a seed pearl necklace.
At the time of production, it was deemed unseemly
for a woman to wear a wristwatch. As a result, Cartier
explored various ways for women to read the time,
while remaining socially appropriate and in style. The
pendant watch was one solution. Cartier is particularly
talented at creating unusual and creative objets d'art,
such as the present example.

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