The Elegance of Innovation: Discover Cartier’s Enthralling New Collections

In the place where innovation, craftsmanship, heritage, and elegance meet, Cartier reigns supreme. For 179 years, the French maison has brought the most exquisite creations to life, showcasing a seemingly limitless capacity for ingenuity and imagination, and pairing them with a technical wizardry that harnesses precious materials in pursuit of its vision. 

Now, at Watches and Wonders 2026, Cartier has delivered an exceptional collection of novelties that raise the already impossibly high bar higher still. From the sheer ambition of the Cartier Privé Tenth Opus to the exceptional incarnations of the luxury firm’s iconic Santos Dumont and Roadster timepieces, each piece makes a statement reaffirming Cartier’s place as the master of innovative luxury and timeless elegance. 

Let’s take a closer look at the key pieces Cartier has unveiled, the very wonders that make our annual pilgrimage to Geneva such a privilege. 

Cartier Privé Tenth Opus

Since 2015, Cartier Privé – Les Opus has been reinterpreting shapes from Cartier’s watchmaking history through a contemporary lens. This year, the launch of its Tenth Opus celebrates three of the maison’s most iconic shapes: the Tortue Chronographe Monopoussoir, the Crash Squelette, and the Tank Normale.

Each piece pays tribute to a key piece from Cartier’s legacy. The Tortue Chronographe Monopoussoir is a bold reinterpretation of a 1998 model from the Collection Privée Cartier Paris. The Crash Squelette is a stunning skeletonised recreation of the watch created in 1967 at the height of Swinging London. And the Tank Normale, with its seven-row platinum bracelet, mechanical movement, and manual winding pay tribute to a gorgeous model from 1934.

All three have been brought to life in platinum (long a signature material for Cartier and synonymous with the height of luxury), paired with a stunning shade of burgundy. Burgundy leather straps are present on the Tortue Chronographe Monopoussoir and the Crash Squelette, while the Tank Normale boasts the aforementioned platinum bracelet, and traced burgundy details are present across the collection, providing a superb contrast with their silvered opaline dials and blued steel hands. A fitting finishing touch comes in the form of a ruby cabochon deployed as the luxurious winding mechanism. 

Tortue Chronographe Monopoussoir

• Case: Platinum
• Dial: Silvered opaline dial with burgundy minute track and rhodium-finished applied hour markers
• Water resistance: Up to 3 bar (approx. 30 metres)
• Strap: Semi-matte burgundy alligator leather
• Movement: Mechanical manufacture movement with manual winding 1928 MC
• Dimensions: 43.7 mm x 34.8 mm
• Thickness: 10.2 mm

Crash Watch

• Case: Platinum
• Dial: Skeleton bridges in the shape of Roman numerals
• Strap: Semi-matte burgundy alligator leather
• Movement: Mechanical manufacture movement with manual winding 1967 MC
• Dimensions: 45.34 mm x 25.18 mm
• Thickness: 12.97 mm
• Limited Edition: 150 numbered pieces

Tank Normale

• Case: Platinum
• Dial: Silvered opaline dial with burgundy Roman numeral hour markers
• Bracelet: Platinum with white gold folding buckle
• Movement: Mechanical movement with manual winding
• Dimensions: 32.6 mm x 25.7 mm
• Thickness: 6.85 mm

Cartier Privé – La Collection

To further celebrate the milestone of Cartier Privé’s Tenth Opus, the maison has simultaneously introduced Cartier Privé – La Collection, which brings together iconic watch designs in limited numbers for the brand’s clients and collectors. For this first collection, Cartier is placing the Tank Normale, Tank Cintrée, and Cloche de Cartier watches centre stage.

These elegant shapes are all constructed using yellow gold and share a design language of sleek lines, golden dials, and blued-steel apple-shaped hands. Each watch also features a manual mechanical movement and a dark grey alligator strap that provides a handsome contrast to the radiant gold of the accompanying case, the back of each of which is engraved with a stylised case in the shape of the watch.

Tank Normale

• Case: Yellow gold
• Dial: Horizontally satin-finished golden dial with black Roman numeral hour markers
• Strap: Dark grey semi-matte alligator leather strap
• Movement: Mechanical movement with manual winding
• Dimensions: 37 mm x 28.65 mm
• Thickness: 5.7 mm

Cloche de Cartier

• Case: Yellow gold
• Dial: Golden-coloured grained dial with dark grey Arabic numeral hour markers
• Strap: Dark grey semi-matte alligator leather strap
• Movement: Mechanical movement with manual winding
• Dimensions: 32.6 mm x 25.7 mm
• Thickness: 6.85 mm

Tank Cintrée

• Case: Yellow gold
• Dial: Golden-coloured opaline dial with grey Roman numeral hour markers
• Strap: Dark grey semi-matte alligator leather strap
• Movement: Mechanical manufacture movement with manual winding 1917 MC
• Dimensions: 23 mm x 46.3 mm
• Thickness: 6.95 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 3 bar (approx. 30 metres)

Santos-Dumont

To put it bluntly, Cartier’s new Santos-Dumont releases are some of the most beautiful watches you’ll ever see. From their flexible metal bracelets to the gorgeous dials of stone and sunray, each watch is a masterpiece that’s somehow vintage yet timeless.

As the first modern watch designed to be worn on the wrist, the Santos Dumont is a historic piece of design, and one that has only grown more beautiful over the decades. With these new releases, all the Santos-Dumont iconography is on full display—Roman numerals, visible screws, circular-grained crown, and a blue cabochon—and contained in an elegant new LM-size. 

Channelling the dandyism of Alberto Santos-Dumont, the Brazilian aviation pioneer for whom the first of these watches was made in 1904, these references push the elegance of this Cartier icon to the nth degree. Powered by the 430 MC hand-wound mechanical manufacture movement, all three are stunning (two feature silvered satin-finish dials with sunray effect), but the most spectacular boasts a dial of gilded obsidian. Requiring an extraordinary feat of gem-cutting skill before it’s polished to reveal extraordinary radiance, this Mexican volcanic stone boasts iridescent reflections courtesy of tiny air bubbles trapped in the material. This makes each watch unique, and at just 0.3 mm in depth, it’s glass-like in its delicacy, a testament to the skill of Cartier’s craftsmen. 

Similarly eye-catching are the elegant mesh bracelets found across the three releases. Inspired by the flexibility of Cartier’s first made-to-measure metal watch bracelets developed in the 1920s, these offer a delicate touch courtesy of 394 1.15 mm-thick links across 15 rows. Each link is machined, finished, and assembled at the manufacture and then attached to the case and clasp. The end result is superbly smooth and offers maximum comfort to the wearer. 

Santos-Dumont (Obsidian/Yellow Gold)

• Case: Yellow gold
• Dial: Obsidian
• Bracelet: Yellow gold interchangeable bracelet
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with manual winding 430 MC
• Dimensions: 43.5 mm x 31.4 mm
• Thickness: 7.3 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 3 bar (approx. 30 metres)

Santos-Dumont (Silver/Platinum)

• Case: Platinum
• Dial: Silvered satin-finish with sunray effect
• Bracelet: Platinum interchangeable bracelet
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with manual winding 430 MC
• Dimensions: 43.5 mm x 31.4 mm
• Thickness: 7.3 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 3 bar (approx. 30 metres)

Santos-Dumont (Silver/Yellow Gold)

• Case: Yellow gold
• Dial: Silvered satin-finish with sunray effect
• Bracelet: Yellow gold interchangeable bracelet
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with manual winding 430 MC
• Dimensions: 43.5 mm x 31.4 mm
• Thickness: 7.3 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 3 bar (approx. 30 metres)

Santos de Cartier Chronograph

Arriving in June, with an approach more focused on functionality than its Santos-Dumont sibling, this release also harnesses Alberto Santos-Dumont’s legacy (though more from the angle of his groundbreaking aviation) via a refresh of the maison’s 2020-introduced Santos de Cartier Chronograph. 

Across a trio of gold, gold and steel, and all-steel incarnations, this release sees Cartier focus on speed, an obsession for Santos-Dumont, who set numerous records in aviation. Fittingly, the Santos de Cartier Chronograph is the perfect means of measuring these kinds of endeavours. 

Built with a real-world practicality that matches its eye-caressing looks, the watch is realised in LM size (47 mm x 40 mm), its dial boasts alternating satin and sunray finishes, black sword-shaped hands coated with legibilty-enhancing Super-LumiNova, and a trio of counters: seconds at 6 o’clock, minutes at 3 o’clock, and hours at 9 o’clock, all circled by a ring flashed in yellow gold or rhodium.

Contrast sits at the heart of each piece’s aesthetics in an effort to maximise readability, while a process of over 70 steps ensures the kind of supreme finishing we’ve come to expect from Cartier. 

The watches are powered by the 1904 – CH MC mechanical, automatic-winding movement, named for the date the first Santos watch was created. It features two push buttons with classic chronograph functionality: start/stop and reset. The watches are also water resistant to 100 metres, and offer a 47-hour power reserve. Plus, each watch is paired with a bracelet packing a SmartLink and QuickSwitch systems, so you can adjust the size or swap out the bracelet entirely in seconds.

Santos de Cartier Chronograph (Yellow Gold)

• Case: Yellow gold
• Dial: Silvered satin-finish in the centre and sunray effect on the perimeter, Super-LumiNova in flange
• Bracelet: Yellow gold, second strap in semi-matte dark grey alligator with an interchangeable folding buckle
• Movement: Automatic 1904-CH MC movement
• Dimensions: 47.5 mm x 39.8 mm
• Thickness: 11.6 mm
• Water-resistance: Up to 100 metres

Santos de Cartier Chronograph (Yellow Gold and Steel)

• Case: Yellow gold and steel
• Dial: Silvered satin-finish in the centre and sunray effect on the perimeter, Super-LumiNova in flange
• Bracelet: Yellow gold and steel, Second strap in black rubber with an interchangeable folding buckle
• Movement: Automatic 1904-CH MC movement
• Dimensions: 47.5 mm x 39.8 mm
• Thickness: 11.6 mm
• Water-resistance: Up to 100 metres

Santos de Cartier Chronograph (Steel)

• Case: Steel
• Dial: Silvered satin-finish in the centre and sunray effect on the perimeter, Super-LumiNova in flange
• Bracelet: Steel, Second strap in black rubber with an interchangeable folding buckle
• Movement: Automatic 1904-CH MC movement
• Dimensions: 47.5 mm x 39.8 mm
• Thickness: 11.6 mm
• Water-resistance: Up to 100 metres

Roadster

Almost a quarter of a century after its debut, the Roadster is racing back into our hearts with seven incredible new references, split between medium and large sizing. As the name suggests, the original design borrowed from the automotive world, which could be seen across its speedometer-inspired dial, conical crown, headlight-shaped date magnifier, and rivets and screws.

Through the efforts of more than 100 artisans, the updated Roadster arrives as a more sophisticated and aerodynamic offering while maintaining the spirit of the original. This has been achieved by redefining proportions, sharpening lines, and rethinking ergonomics without altering that unmistakable shape.

On first glance, the most striking feature is the incredible combination of the crown and magnifier. Perfectly integrated into the case and bezel, it’s a wonderfully bold piece of design and engineering that immediately recalls hot rods of the 1950s. The effect is further accentuated by the four new rivets on the shapely bezel. 

This surrounds the watch’s iconic dial design, which boasts a circular striated pattern, a rail track, and Roman numerals, as well as an ‘appliqué’ effect to add relief. Like any speedometer, legibility is essential, so the dial on the steel versions of the Roadster features blue or anthracite sword-shaped hands coated with Super-LumiNova.

Powered by one of two signature self-winding mechanical movements (the 1847 MC for large models and the 1899 MC for medium models), the new Roadster is a stunning demonstration of Cartier’s commitment to design that’s simultaneously thrillingly bold and undeniably chic. 

Roadster (White/Steel – Large)

• Case: Steel
• Dial: White with Super-LumiNova
• Bracelet/Strap: Steel equipped with the QuickSwitch system, second semi-matte navy blue alligator-skin strap with steel interchangeable folding clasp
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with automatic winding 1847 MC
• Dimensions: 47 mm x 38 mm
• Thickness: 10.06 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 10 bar (approx. 100 metres)

Roadster (White/Steel – Medium)

• Case: Steel
• Dial: White with Super-LumiNova
• Bracelet/Strap: Steel equipped with the QuickSwitch system, second semi-matte dark grey alligator-skin strap with steel interchangeable folding buckle
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with automatic winding 1899 MC
• Dimensions: 42.5 mm x 34.9 mm
• Thickness: 9.7 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 10 bar (approx. 100 metres)

Roadster (White/Yellow Gold – Large)

• Case: Yellow gold
• Dial White with Super-LumiNova
• Bracelet/Strap: Yellow gold equipped with the QuickSwitch® system, second semi-matte dark grey alligator-skin strap with yellow gold interchangeable folding buckle
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with automatic winding 1847 MC
• Dimensions: 47 mm x 38 mm
• Thickness: 10.06 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 10 bar (approx. 100 metres)

Roadster (White/Yellow Gold – Medium)

• Case: Yellow gold
• Dial: White with Super-LumiNova
• Bracelet/Strap: Yellow gold equipped with the QuickSwitch system, second semi-matte dark grey alligator-skin strap with yellow gold interchangeable folding buckle.
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with automatic winding 1899 MC
• Dimensions: 42.5 mm x 34.9 mm
• Thickness: 9.7 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 10 bar (approx. 100 metres)

Roadster (White/Yellow Gold and Steel – Large)

• Case: Yellow gold and steel
• Dial: White with Super-LumiNova
• Bracelet/Strap: Yellow gold and steel equipped with the QuickSwitch system, second semi-matte grey alligator-skin strap with steel interchangeable folding buckle
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with automatic winding 1847 MC
• Dimensions: 47 mm x 38 mm
• Thickness: 10.06 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 10 bar (approx. 100 metres)

Roadster (White/Yellow Gold and Steel – Medium)

• Case: Yellow gold and steel
• Dial: White with Super-LumiNova
• Bracelet/Strap: Yellow gold and steel equipped with the QuickSwitch system, second semi-matte dark grey alligator-skin strap with steel interchangeable folding buckle
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with automatic winding 1899 MC
• Dimensions: 42.5 mm x 34.9 mm
• Thickness: 9.7 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 10 bar (approx. 100 metres)

Roadster (Dark Blue/Steel – Large)

• Case: Steel
• Dial: Dark blue PVD with Super-LumiNova
• Bracelet/Strap: Steel equipped with the QuickSwitch system, second navy blue rubber strap with steel interchangeable folding buckle
• Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with automatic winding 1847 MC
• Dimensions: 47 mm x 38 mm
• Thickness: 10.06 mm
• Water resistance: Up to 10 bar (approx. 100 metres)