VINTAGE CARTIER CODEX

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The original Cartier Crash was created at the request of Hollywood actor Stewart Granger, who had told to New Bond Street that he wanted a watch "like no other". It was Rupert Emmerson, Jean-Jacques Cartier’s favourite designer, who took on the task of fulfilling this request. Influenced by the wild Swinging London era the city was experiencing at the time, Emmerson appears to have blended the shapes of the Baignoire Maxi and Salvador Dalí’s melting clocks, which resulted in a distinctive and unique form.

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Once the design was finalised, Cartier London’s master watchmaker, Eric Denton, received the case from Cartier’s goldsmith’s workshop, Wright & Davies. Denton then fitted the watch with a standard LeCoultre No. 841 movement. Finally, Emmerson painstakingly hand-painted the dial, but a problem arose regarding the alignment of the hands with the numerals on the irregularly shaped dial. As a result, the two men had to readjust and repaint the watch several times to ensure the hands aligned correctly to show the correct time.

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Ultimately, Jean-Jacques Cartier felt that the design was “too Carnaby Street” and, upon delivery of the watch, a disappointed Granger returned it and requested a Tank Oblique in its place. It is estimated that fewer than 30 Crash watches were produced by Cartier London.

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