RARE Cartier 1980's Panthere de Cartier Paris Parfums Pin

RARE Cartier 1980's Panthere de Cartier Paris Parfums Pin featuring the iconic perfume bottle design with faceted frosted gold glass centre, depicting the colour of the perfume, with 'Panthere de Cartier' in black writing and a smooth gunmetal tone frame with smooth gold highlights at the edges. It is signed Cartier again at the front on the gunmetal on the base. It is signed 'PARFUMS Cartier Paris' on the smooth gunmetal tone reverse. The pin is 3cm high and 2.2cm at its widest point and it weighs 14.1g. Lovely condition and a quality pin synonymous with Cartier.

Cartier was founded in 1847, a brave move in the the light of The French Revolution whose followers did not take kindly 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 jeweller 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 jewellery 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 at a time when 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 jewellery side of the business, Cartier’s internationally renowned offerings include the Tutti Frutti collection, which featured colourful 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 reportedly inspired by medieval chastity belts. 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. It is certainly one of the most well known and internationally revered jewellers in the world among clients both existing and aspirational