Introducing: The Rotonde De Cartier Astromystrieux

January 21, 2016

This was a big year for mens watches at Cartier. You may have read about the new Cartier Drive and the other pre-SIHH releases that we covered in December of last year, but one that you may not have heard about yet is this Cartier Rotonde de Cartier Astromystrieux. This watch is a fantastic example of the technical skills that Cartier possesses and doesn't show off enough. Cartier is known for their vintage (and modern) mystery clocks C Louis Cartier and Maurice Couet mastered the mystery clock mechanism in 1912, taking inspiration from the famous illusionist Jean Eugne Robert-Houdin. This year, Cartier decided to modify and apply this technology to the Rotonde de Cartier in their brand new Astromystrieux. This watch is different from any watch I have seen in recent years. It is not just a mystery watch, but rather a mystery movement. Instead of just the hands being attached to the two moving crystals, the entire escapement, balance-wheel, gear train, and barrel are centralized under the hands so they move in sync. The movement of the escapement, balance wheel, gear-train, and barrel is somewhat similar to a tourbillon in that it is suspended and is supported by a cage-like structure (the rotating sapphire crystals). The Astromystrieux is 43.5 mm in diameter and the movement is a caliber 9462 manual-winding movement. This piece is limited to a series of 100 pieces. Pricing and details to come. For more information, please visit the Cartier website.Follow HODINKEE's live SIHH 2016 updates here, and in our mobile app, and you can read all SIHH stories here.