Crash Skeleton: A Cartier Classic Goes Edgy

For the longest time, you couldn't speak of the Crash without mentioning Salvador Dali. The latest edition of this Cartier classic might just change that, thanks to an edgier and tougher design.

If we were to charge for the number of times Salvador Dali (can anyone say, The Persistence of Memory?) gets quoted when talking about this watch, there is a chance we might just walk away with one. But unless you are a Paul Haggis fan, or into Finnish rock (death metal, anyone?), the word Crash would not register much. To watch fiends, however, this timepiece is a legend. It is along the lines of what the Birkin is to Hermes; or the Flora scarf is to Gucci.

Unlike Cartier's other popular models like the Tank, the Santos or the Ballon Bleu, the Crash, might not necessarily be talked about a lot. Some might say it's due to its niche nature. Since its debut in 1967, there have been just three other launches for the model - in the '90s, and more recently one in 2013 for a ladies line. Each time, the watch comes with a limited run that numbered less than 400.

The latest release of the model, dubbed the Crash Skeleton, sticks to that same tack, albeit at an even more exclusive quantity of 67 pieces. If its predecessors were classic and traditional in appearances (think leather-bound straps and diamond cases), this new iteration shows a tougher and edgier Crash. The overall result is more Steampunk, less Surrealist. Part of this lies on the wholly skeletonised dial that lets you admire every gear, and nook and cranny of its manual-winding movement, from the front to the back, at one glance. The industrial theme continues with the platinum case and grey croco strap of the ticker.

Here we breakdown all the things you need to know about the new Crash (including an abridged history of this timepiece).

1. Firstly, there would be no Crash watch had Cartier not debuted its Baignore model in 1906.

The Baignore

2. There's a slightly morbid twist to the story: During the '60s, an executive from Cartier's London office smashed his car in an accident. It burst into flames and the heat mangled the case of the Baignore watch he was wearing into a shape that resembles the melted clocks in Salvador Dali's The Persistence of Memory (that explains the 'Dali watch' nickname it earned). Cartier was so smitten by the the dented design that it launched the Crash watch in 1967.

The Dali connection is purely coincidental. 

3. It is a limited-edition model (read: collector's item; auction-worthy; good investment). The debut model had a run of just 15 pieces. One of these original pieces fetched as much as US$130,000 (S$173,000) at Christie's. 

Even the ladies' jewellery edition in 2013 numbered at just 267 pieces.

4. Talk about a unique movement. The new model is powered by the three-day manual-winding movement 9618 MC. This has been sculpted in the concave shape of the watch case, which technically also becomes the dial. There are no indexes printed on the dial too. Instead, the Roman numerals are turned into the bridges of the movement. That's beauty in a nutshell.

The open-worked movement of the Crash Skeleton measures 4mm thick.

5. It has major arm candy cred: Part of this is due to the 28mm x 45mm platinum case, the other is thanks to that tough Steampunk look.

Price upon application.