Green With Envy: The Cartier Santos de Cartier Skeleton Green WHSA0028

The house of Cartier, despite its jeweler origins and notoriety, is an incredibly important watch manufacturer. Credited with the creation of one of the first true wrist-watches, they continue to hold a significant stake in the market, ranking third in total market share of Swiss watch exports in 2022. For some reason though, brands that are more well known for their jewelry seem not to get the attention they deserve from watch enthusiasts.

Cartier has proven that they can produce thoughtful, elegant, timeless, and wearable wristwatches. This has won over the general luxury-buying public, but the brand has also released a number of haute horology pieces in recent years seemingly as a way to prove their watch making clout. Combining their expertise in design, jewelry, and high watchmaking, Cartier created the reference WHSA0028 Santos de Cartier Skeleton.

Cartier Santos Skeleton Green WHSA0028 — Cartier Santos Skeleton Green Ref. WHSA0028

History

Louis Cartier created the original Santos timepiece as a favor to friend and Brazilian aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont. Santos-Dumont wanted a watch that could be worn on the wrist for easier access and viewing while piloting his plane. This request, led to the first Santos-Dumont in 1904 (which Santos-Dumont wore on his wrist during the first video recorded flight in 1907). The Santos-Dumont was put into full production by 1911, creating the first mass market men’s wristwatch, and the design we see today is remarkably similar to the original. Indeed, it is considered by most to be the first pilot’s watch.

1978 saw the release of the Santos de Cartier, which added an integrated bracelet to the design of the Santos. This repositioned the model from a classic dressy piece to a more modern luxury sport watch. Originally released in two-tone gold and stainless steel with yellow gold screws on the bracelet and a gold bezel, it was very much in keeping with the style of the time.

Nine years later, the Santos was revised again, and renamed the Santos Galbée. This redesign softened the hard edges of the Santos-Dumont, making the case more curved, while still maintaining the strong, square shape. Powered mainly by quartz movements, it was not until 2005 that the Santos Galbée XL was offered with an automatic calibre movement and a larger case size.

These 1987 and 2005 designs play a large role in the most recent redesign. The new Cartier santos released in 2018 has more of the curved case design and rounded edges of the Galbée, but the case and bracelet have been modernized in terms of design and quality to meet the standards of contemporary collectors.

Design Details

The original Santos was inspired by a square pocket watch design. The main characteristics of the original watch that clearly influence the design of the Santos collection today are the square case, square dial, and lugs that are integrated directly into the case. The polished bezel with rivets is another through-line from early Santos models to today, however the rivets are now large screws which give the watch a more industrial look. The front surface of the watch is brushed, with a polished bevel along the sides of the case and the bezel is polished, with polished screws. The watch also comes with a green alligator leather strap that matches the green accents on the Roman numerals on the dial

The dial of this Santos de Cartier Skeleton is stunning. Featuring Roman numerals (that are typical for Cartier) that are integrated into the movement design, they serve as the baseplate and bridges for the movement. While filled in with an emerald green colored enamel to provide contrast and a pop of color, the fully open-worked dial provides a clear view of the gear train, balance spring, and mainspring (there is no date window). The movement surfaces on both sides are vertically brushed, with chamfered edges, continuing the vertical brushing motif from the case. The hands are large sword style and filled with lume, lending a more sporting character to this watch.

Measuring 39.8mm wide, 9mm thick, and with 100 meters of water resistance, this is one of the more sport-oriented Cartier watches, despite the high level of watchmaking involved with the skeletonization. The combination of the larger case and the openworked dial make this luxury watch something of a statement piece. While just under 40mm wide may seem moderately sized by today’s standards, Cartier watches always have more presence than their size may suggest, probably due to the larger surface area of a square watch.

Inner Workings

No part of the Cartier caliber 9611 MC manual wind movement that powers this piece is hidden from display. Designed and developed specifically for this piece, the movement is a slim 3.97mm thick, has 138 components, and 20 jewels, all of which are on full display through the skeletonized dial. The watch also features a respectable 72-hour power reserve.

Versus the Competition

Integrated bracelet sports watches have been trending for quite a while now, and there appears to be no sign of them falling out of favor anytime soon. As the popularity of these pieces grows, we are seeing more and more of them offered with skeletonized dials. It makes sense that any watch brand looking to carve out a space for themselves in this crowded market would release an integrated bracelet watch with a skeletonized dial to keep pace with the rest of the industry.

To Cartier’s credit, their decades of experience in the world of fine jewelry has benefitted many aspects of their watches tremendously. Their bracelets are comfortable and well made, differences in finishes are clearly delineated, and they have a design ethos that clearly unites their offerings as a brand. When considering alternatives to the Santos de Cartier Skeleton, you might want to look at other jewelry brands that are also making great watches.

When Piaget released their redesigned Polo collection a few years ago, there was considerable skepticism. However, the Piaget Polo Skeleton really brought the line into its own, uniting Piaget’s skills in the area of ultra-thin micro-rotor movements with its most sporting and contemporary design. With multiple colors available for the dial, it makes the already lithe watch appear even more youthful. Only 30 meters of water resistance means that it is not as sporting as the Santos De Cartier Skeleton, but at 6.5mm thick and with an automatic movement, the Piaget Polo Skeleton makes a strong case as a Santos alternative.

In contrast to the Piaget, Bulgari’s Octo Finissimo shocked and delighted the watch world when it made its debut in 2014. Based on the original Octo designed by Gerald Genta (Bulgari had purchased the rights to Genta’s brand), the Octo Finissimo gave the brand a modern icon. Additionally, the Octo Finissimo line has served as a platform for the brand to experiment on, breaking several records for thinness in the process. For the Octo Finissimo Ultranero Skeleton, Bulgari took the Octo Finissimo and created an ultra-thin skeletonized marvel. The titanium case keeps the 5.37mm thin case light and the caliber BVL 128SK openworked movement measures just 2.35mm thick, and has a 65-hour power reserve. The 30 meters of water resistance keeps this watch strictly on desk duty, but it will look great doing it.

Alternatively, Girard Perregaux contrasts with the other watches mentioned above as it is a traditional brand known for its watchmaking as opposed to jewelry. The original Laureato was released in 1975 and the brand has updated the design a few times over the years, most recently in 2017. The GP Laureato Skeleton comes in a 42mm, 10.93mm thick case, and has 100 meters of water resistance. This makes the Laureato suitable for daily wear, similar to the Santos de Cartier. So if a contemporary, skeletonized, integrated bracelet sports watch from a traditional manufacturer is more up your alley, the Girard Perregaux Laureato is an option worth considering.

Personality

Even with all of the high level watchmaking on display, the Santos de Cartier Skeleton is still very much a classic Cartier timepiece. While the new Santos de Cartier is one of the more mainstream offerings from the brand, collectors that will gravitate towards the model are either already Cartier fans, or looking for a daily wearer that is slightly different from the norm. For collectors of skeletonized watches, the Santos Skeleton offers the rare combination of a design-oriented openworked movement with daily-wear specifications. No matter how you look at it, the Santos de Cartier Skeleton is a very unique watch.

Final Thoughts

Cartier has built its reputation creating elegant jewelry and timepieces and has always managed to stay current while at the same time remaining true to their design principles and history. The Santos de Cartier Skeleton is a prime example of the brand taking those principles and applying them to a dress watch that will appeal to modern collectors looking to add a new piece to their watch collection. An integrated steel bracelet, beautifully executed design, historical influences, and a well finished in-house movement, are all the trappings of an enthusiast favorite. For those willing to stray from traditional high-horology brands and drift towards a major jewelry house, they will be delighted with one of the most cohesively designed skeletonized watches available.