The Cartier Panthère, launched in 1983, is a quartz watch with a square case with softly rounded corners and a supple, flexible bracelet of fine links. It was made in steel, in gold and in steel-and-gold, and in several sizes, with a Roman-numeral dial and a sapphire cabochon crown. I did not find reliable official figures for the sizes of the earliest models.

The Panthère became a defining women’s watch of the 1980s, worn as jewellery as much as a timepiece, and its bracelet was its most imitated feature. The name refers to Cartier’s panther emblem.

The original Panthère was discontinued in the early 2000s, and Cartier has since relaunched the name as the modern Panthère de Cartier, so the design remains available in the current collection.