Feminine finesse

When it comes to women’s timepieces, the legendary stand-outs include the unisex Santos de Cartier and Tank, Rolex’s Datejust and Chanel’s J12 (plus the brand’s Première and Boy. Friend). There’s also Bulgari’s Serpenti, which couldn’t be mistaken for any other.

Cartier’s Baignoire deserves recognition, too. While not as well known as the Tank (or Panthère de Cartier), it predates both and is making its presence felt afresh this year. The design goes back to 1912, when Louis Cartier elongated a traditional case into a form reminiscent of a bathtub (“baignoire” in French). By the late 1950s, it was christened the Baignoire, had evolved into an oval and the dial was stamped with either Roman or Arabic numerals. A decade later, it was maxed out with a stretched version featuring exaggerated numbers. It graced the wrists of Catherine Deneuve, Jeanne Moreau, Romy Schneider and Charlotte Gainsbourg.

This year, the Baignoire has been entirely reworked and comes in a variety of permutations, the first paying homage to the 1958 oval model. While the profile remains largely unchanged – that oval prominently outlined in yellow gold or white gold with a staggered diamond setting – modern concessions include redesigned Roman numerals on a silvered sandblasted dial and an integrated caseback that ensures water resistance to 30 metres. The movement is quartz.

Then there’s the more daring Baignoire Allongée, inspired by the oversized model of the 1960s. The gold bezel is either embellished with diamonds or worked into studs shaped like Cartier’s Clou de Paris motif. Inside is a manual-wind mechanical movement.

The new Baignoires (au.cartier.com) come in three sizes and prices start at $15,800 for the oval version and $35,900 for the Allongée. The range tops out at $234,000, which will reward you with the Allongée featuring a rhodium-plated white-gold case, dial and bracelet, each set with brilliant-cut diamonds.