This article is dedicated to the Cartier Santos 100.
For some time no longer in the catalog, it was created by the Maison in 2004 to celebrate the hundredth anniversary since Louis Cartier created one of the first wristwatches in history, certainly the first for men.
As with the invention of the watch, that of the wrist variant cannot be traced back to a single name. But for sure Cartier can boast several unique testimonies including being the first brand to regularly market a wristwatch in 1911.
It is therefore evident that the Santos 100 – commemorative watch – is a double cornerstone of the Maison. He remained virtually unchanged until 2016 when he began to mark the end of his term.
Two years later in 2018 fake Cartier relaunched a completely new Santos series with 13 references and cases of various metals. This second version of the watch has changed the design without affecting its message which, over a hundred years old, never fails to emphasize its infinite class.
The first Santos
It all began in 1904 when the daredevil Brazilian-born inventor and aviator Santos-Dumont turned to Louis Cartier and confessed that while he was flying on his Demoiselle he would never be able to read his pocket watch.
So Cartier designed and created for him a thin timepiece to be tied to the wrist with a leather strap closed by a tiny clasp. In November 1906 Santos-Dumont was immortalized in a 21.6-second film while at the helm of his aircraft he was flying at a height of about 220 meters and of course with that Cartier tied to his wrist.
Since then all the models in the collection, not least the centenary Santos, have remained glued to that prototype with the characteristic square shape of the hollowed bezel, the slender Roman numerals and the cabochon-cut stone set on the crown. But as we will see below, when it was time they were able to adapt successfully.
The history of the Santos 100
In 2004 Cartier entrusted the Santos 100 with the difficult task of perpetuating the Santos-Dumont watch in a modern key.
Having grown a lot in size, its case, obviously pseudo-square in shape, initially measured 41 mm in diameter by 51 mm in length. At 10.3 mm thick, the Santos of a hundred years later recall the incredibly thin silhouette (for those times) of their ancestor.
It was also available in a smaller version of 35.6mm wide. To move them, after Cartier had also had to bend to quartz in the models of previous years, she chose very reliable self-winding ETA 2892 calibers.
Slowly the Santos 100, from a timepiece born to pay homage to the centenary, has become a collection in itself by developing various references including some with cases in advanced materials of light titanium or in simple steel but with black PVD treatment.
Other aesthetic variations included the classic square screwed bezels but in 18k gold and with all black titanium cases.
As already mentioned, measurements and design remain virtually unchanged, but recently a skeletonized model has also been seen with the new manual winding movement 9611 on board, the first in-house caliber created by Cartier.
The Santos of 2018
The Santos 100 line is no longer in the catalog and after some reflections in 2018, Cartier surprisingly launched at the SIHH a series of completely new Santos that courageously in turn took their first steps fearful of not being up to a so legendary profile. But they turned out to be a success.
From the outside, the clock now appears more rectangular, thinner, and with several small aesthetic interventions. The look is so pleasing that with such results even the most reluctant brand to modify a single screw (Rolex) would be persuaded to go against its nature.
Today the collection presents big steps forward even below, in mechanics. Now the Santos series is powered by the Cartier 1847 movement, an in-house movement.
In conclusion
On the Cartier Italia website today the Santos 100 large model can still be found in three references: XL, medium and Carbon. Here with us there are probably still some pieces to be disposed of. The big version in steel costs 6,850 euros, but being a timepiece that has been around for fifteen years, there are also many second-hand replica watches uk.
Waterproof up to 100 meters with a bright color neoprene strap I see it at ease even at sea. If you can make it yours, a Santos 100 is a best-buy.