In fashion, they say that everything eventually comes back around. While this ferocious fashion favorite never fell out of style, it has been preparing its biggest pounce for 100 years!
Of course, Cartier’s Panther has been a staple ornamentation since the house debuted its first Panther motif on a wristwatch with a diamond case and speckled onyx spots in 1914.
Famous bold panther baubles of the past were first spotted prowling on the likes of high society ladies like Maria Felix, Daisy Fellowes, and Barbara Hutton.
When Louis Cartier’s muse (and longtime Cartier Artistic Director) Jeanne Toussiant paraded the first full cat lounging atop her vanity case in 1917… and then the Duke of Windsor commissioned a 3D gold brooch for his wife in 1948… the Panther’s place as a best bet bedazzler was settled.
And so, in honor of the line’s centennial anniversary, Cartier has looked to its legacy collection — and indeed expanded to offer more of its crave worthy cats — with a full Panthére de Cartier collection released this year. The feline line features some 56 pieces, the biggest in the French jewelry house’s history.
New coveted panther pieces include a mesmerizing onyx diamond and emerald bracelet, a yellow-gold pendant cat with enamel spots sitting astride a glistening citrine, and — perhaps the fiercest — a solid-gold geometric-cut panther head ring with tsavorite garnet eyes.
Just who wants to wear these wild and exotic wonders? Fearless femmes, of course! These days you’ll still find Cartier’s cats on fierce and frisky females — like Lady Gaga, and models Miranda Kerr and Cara Delavigne.
