Passions Watch Exchange

About This Watch

Pre-owned. Comes with orig. black crocodile leather pouch and a 14ct gold chain but no paper.

This is a very rare example of a modern day pocket watch made by Piaget for Cartier dating to early 1970s. The 18K gold case is shaped like a disco-volante (flying saucer) and fitted with a precious Tiger's eye stone dial. It measures 43mm across so offers a lovely weighted feel when one holds it.

The watch is fitted with a ultra-thin movement Calibre 9P that was conceived in 1957 by Piaget and remains in production today. It is called into duty for this particular watch that was commissioned by Cartier and signed on the Tiger's eye stone dial where Piaget is the undisputed master in producing precious stone dials since 1963. Production of these dials risks a high failure rate as they were often polished to a mere 1mm or thinner and what we see here is even more difficult to accomplish due to the large 35mm surface area.

The 18ct solid gold case was made by Louis Lang SA (1886), a specialist case maker from Porrentruy, Switzerland just few miles north of Bern. It is stamped with Piaget name and numbers while the rear of the bow shows hand-stamped numbers by Cartier, showing 12 71 which probably denotes the manufacture date of Dec 1971 and another set of 5 digit serial numbers.

The watch came with it's original gloss black crocodile hide pouch and is hot stamped with Piaget inside in gold and a removable 14ct yellow gold chain with a blank plate is attached to it.

The watch is in near mint condition throughout, showing the original factory brushed finish and little surface micro hairlines only. The bow is cleverly designed with a hidden hinge into part of the bezel rim for a flushed look. The brownish-gold gemstone dial is a metamorphic rock that's forged by nature many millions years ago and emits a lustrous glow with horizontal bars which is absolutely captivating. Tiger's eye is believe to ward off evil and worn by Roman soldiers as an amulet for protection in battles.

At 43mm, this watch is an optimum size and just 5mm thin. It slips into the original leather pouch with a tight snug fit which shows the fine quality workmanship by this artisanal leathersmith.

This Cartier represents ultimate opulence from the Swiss Piaget watch maker with stylish elegance by the French house. We have never seen another in the past 3 decades and this would undoubtedly be the pride in any watch collection and Piaget is enjoying a revival in recent months as seasoned collectors seek out new brands.