Cartier

The legendary Mystery Clock

The mystery clock is without a doubt Cartier’s most wondrous innovation whereby the hands of the clock seem suspended in mid-air, telling time apparently unaided by any mechanism. In fact, the design cleverly uses two disks of transparent quartz with two glass disks in between, one holding the hand for the hours, the other for the minutes, which are rotated by a mechanism hidden within the frame. Mystery clocks were only produced at Cartier Paris and not in the London and New York branches. Their production continues to this day, but exceedingly few examples are created each year.

Maurice Coüet developed the mystery clock for Cartier in circa 1911. The first example was called the “Model A” and had a rectangular outline, the mechanism was hidden by two vertical racks. By 1920, Coüet perfected his design so that it only required one central axel to connect the dial to the mechanism which allowed for a greater variety in design. Several types of mystery clocks were created, including the 'Ecran' which had a rectangular dial, and the 'Portique', which had a pendent dial that took on the shape of a gong. East-Asian design elements featured prominently in the mystery clocks of the 1920s. Nowhere is this better expressed than in the twelve Animalia clocks which were produced between 1922 and 1931. In these extraordinary works, the dial rests on a basis of carp fish, turtles, elephants and chimeras, all exquisitely carved from jadeite, coral and rock crystal.

The mystery clock offered in this sale was created circa 1980. Its design elements, in particular the carved nephrite vase, the stylised hours and hands of flame design, refer to the East Asian motifs that featured prominently on the celebrated mystery clocks of the art deco era.