Cartier Panthere Bracelet

An exquisite Panthère de Cartier bracelet — the perfect finishing touch to any ensemble — can help you infuse your look with a welcome touch of vintage glamour.

From lions and tigers and bears to butterflies and snakes and turtles, all kinds of animals have been portrayed in fine jewelry over the ages. But the kings of the jewelry jungle are Cartier’s Panthères. For more than a century, the acclaimed French luxury house has been making jewels inspired by the fabulous feline.

While panthers appeared on Cartier vanity cases and more in as early as 1917, the icon didn’t take on its best-known three-dimensional form until the late 1940s, when the Duke of Windsor purchased a brooch from the house for his wife, the Duchess of Windsor — otherwise known as Wallis Simpson. This piece, designed by Cartier's Jeanne Toussaint — the first of at least two brooches bought by the Duke in this era — featured a gold panther lying atop a cabochon emerald. The couple ordered a panther clip in 1949 — this one accompanied by a 152.35-carat Kashmir cabochon sapphire — followed by the bracelet three years later.

The original Panthère de Cartier bracelet is more like a sculpture for the wrist than a piece of jewelry. It features a diamond-and-onyx-encrusted panther with marquise-cut emerald eyes positioned as if they were fixated on prey.  While the bracelet is not accompanied by a large gem, it stands out from its predecessors in that its form is articulated so that its linked pieces can move along the wrist rather than remain fixed in place.

The big cat slinked into the jewelry house in 1914, via a George Barbier illustration for an invitation to an exhibition. The image, which was commissioned by Louis Cartier, showed a black panther lying at the feet of a glamorous woman wearing a gown and long strands of pearls.

One might assume that the feline on the invite signaled a new collection of panther jewelry. It didn’t. The image reflected the popularity of panthers in Paris during the period. Panther prints were a stylish element of home decor and women’s fashions. The strong and exotic creature captured the mood in the City of Lights post–World War I, on the eve of the Jazz Age.

The Windsors were not the only customers enamored of Cartier’s panther. Socialites and royalty purchased their own cat jewels from Cartier over the years. Since then, the brand has released numerous Panthère pieces, from the 1983 Panthère de Cartier watch to the 1987 Panthère de Cartier perfume. A special collection of panther-adorned jewelry debuted in 2014 to celebrate the centennial of the icon, although none can quite compare to the Duchess’s original bracelet — it fetched $7 million at auction in 2010.

Find vintage Panthère de Cartier bracelets and other Cartier bracelets on 1stDibs.

For its extraordinary range of bracelets, watches, rings and other adornments, French luxury house Cartier is undeniably one of the most well known and internationally revered jewelers in the world among clients both existing and aspirational.

Perhaps 1847 was not the ideal time to open a new watchmaking and jewelry business, as the French Revolution was not kind to the aristocracy who could afford such luxuries. Nevertheless, it was the year Louis-François Cartier (1819–1904) — who was born into poverty — founded his eponymous empire, assuming control of the workshop of watchmaker Adolphe Picard, under whom he had previously been employed as an assistant. Of course, in the beginning, it was a relatively modest affair, but by the late 1850s, Cartier had its first royal client, Princess Mathilde Bonaparte, niece of Napoleon Bonaparte, who commissioned the jeweler to design brooches, earrings and other accessories.

Under the leadership of Louis-François’s son, Alfred, who took over in 1874, business boomed. Royalty around the world wore Cartier pieces, including Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, the Maharaja of Patiala and King Edward VII, who had 27 tiaras made by the jewelry house for his coronation in 1902 and issued Cartier a royal warrant in 1904. (Today, the British royal family still dons Cartier pieces; Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, regularly sports a Ballon Bleu de Cartier watch.)

Cartier’s golden years, however, began when Alfred introduced his three sons, Louis, Pierre and Jacques, to the business. The brothers expanded Cartier globally: Louis reigned in Paris, Pierre in New York and Jacques in London, ensuring their brand’s consistency at their branches across the world. The trio also brought in such talents as Charles Jacqueau and Jeanne Toussaint.

One of Cartier’s earliest major successes was the Santos de Cartier watch — one of the world's first modern wristwatches for men. (Previously, a large number of people were using only pocket watches.) Louis designed the timepiece in 1904 for his friend, popular Brazilian aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont, who wanted to be able to check the time more easily while flying.

Cartier’s other famous timepieces include the Tank watch, which was inspired by the linear form of military tanks during World War I, and the so-called mystery clocks. Invented by watchmaker and magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin and later crafted exclusively for Cartier in the house’s workshop by watchmaker Maurice Couët, the mystery clocks were so named because the integration of glass dials on which the clocks’ hands would seemingly float as well as structures that are hidden away within the base give the illusion that they operate without machinery.

On the jewelry side of the business, Cartier’s internationally renowned offerings include the Tutti Frutti collection, which featured colorful carved gemstones inspired by Jacques’s trip to India and grew in popularity during the Art Deco years; the panthère motif, which has been incorporated into everything from brooches to rings; and the Love bracelet, a minimal, modernist locking bangle inspired by medieval chastity belts that transformed fine jewelry.

While the Cartier family sold the business following the death of Pierre in 1964, the brand continues to innovate today, renewing old hits and creating new masterpieces.

Find contemporary and vintage Cartier watches, engagement rings, necklaces and other accessories on 1stDibs.