The Watch: The Cartier Santos Octagon is a watch with a dialogue. The original square Cartier Santos Dumont created in 1904 featured exposed bezel screws and an angular case shape. More than a century later, the Cartier Santos still features (and always has) those design elements, and is still a beautiful piece of industrial design.
So where does the Octagon fit in? Between 1904 and 2023, (watch) design moved through many eras and iterations, with one of the most influential being the waves of Gerald Genta-designed and Genta-inspired (Royal Oak, Nautilus, Ingenieur, Laureato, anything with screws, angles, an integrated bracelet, and/or a vague connection to portholes) watches. First hitting in the 70's with the original iterations, again in the 90's with new creations like the Overseas, the square Santos was suddenly surrounded and outflanked by descendants of its original design. Which is why Cartier created the Santos Octagon. Taking a cue from the Royal Oak and the Genta-created Octo, this 30mm case is a very 90's vision of the future, and a great example of design language moving from originator to descendant and back again.
This particular example has a beautifully spidered dial, beginning to resemble marble.
Condition: This watch is running well. It has not been timegrapher tested but it maintains usable time over the course of a day. The case and bracelet have light wear consistent with some use, but are in very good condition. Fits a wrist of about 6.75”. One note: the clasp feels a little “off” as it shuts, but it closes securely and looks fine. It’s only during the actual act of closing that things seem, for a moment, to be off track.
