Behind every watch is a story. The birth of the legendary Cartier Cheich is above all a company story. Between Thierry Sabin, creator of the Paris-Dakar Rally, and Alain-Dominic Perrin, who laid the foundations of the modern luxury industry and returned Cartier to its share of luxury and dreams in the 1980s.
In 1977, the man, still a motorcycle rider, got lost in the vast Libyan desert while completing the Abidjan-Nice rally. Found and rescued after almost three days in the middle of the desert on his Yamaha XT 500, Thierry Sabin promises himself, if he gets out of it, to organize the most difficult motorcycle rally of all time. This would be the Paris-Dakar rally that started two years later in 1979. Over lunch with Alain-Dominic Perrin, then president of Cartier, Thierry Sabin asked him to create a watch that could reflect the spirit of his rally. . To win it, pilots had to win the Défi Cartier, which consisted of winning twice in the same category (motorcycle, car or truck) at Paris-Dakar. Only two riders would succeed, Hubert Auriol and Gaston Rahier, both on motorcycles.
Jean-Pierre Tran, who once ran the Paris-Dakar, recalled recently ordering five examples of this Cartier Cheich in yellow gold, rose gold and white gold. One for Thierry Sabin, the other four will go to the motorcycle, car and truck winners. All featured an incredible chaîche-shaped case paired with Cartier’s signature blue cabochon crown and brown leather strap. Ultimately, only a few rare examples will be produced and delivered, including one to Thierry Sabin himself. Another looks set to go to Hubert Auriol and the final one to Gaston Rahier, winner of 1984 and 1985. “In my memory, Thierry stole his own, confided Jean-Pierre Tran in response to fans of this model. I regret that I didn’t order more and I don’t have any, even just in metal.” Then no more will be produced, making this model even rarer than its unique form. The Cartier Challenge would end in a helicopter crash in 1986 that would cost the lives of Thierry Sabin, Daniel Balavoin, Nathalie Audent and Jean-Paul Le Four.
For Gaston Rahier, who died in 2005, this watch, as he said in an interview, was the best gift he ever received in his life. His Cartier Cheich watch will be presented for the first time at Sotheby’s Paris next September during the Luxury Edit sale. A rarity, valued today at between €200,000 and €400,000, offered for sale by the family of its original owner. “This Cartier Cheich watch is extraordinary in many ways, believes the auction house’s international watch specialist, Benoit Colson. Its intimate connection with the world’s most famous motor race, made up of victories and dramas, attracts the attention of true collectors. The Gaston Rahier example, equipped with a mechanical movement with manual winding, is offered in its original case marked “Trophée Paris Alger Dakar” under the Cartier signature.
Designed by Jacques Diltoer, then Cartier’s creative director, its striking case was directly inspired by the rally logo, which features the face of a Tuareg wearing a Cheche, a traditional veil wrapped around the head to protect from the sun. The two Cheich watches are part of the Cartier collection, including a women’s only model, a smaller and diamond-set set, and a 1985 example with baton markers and elongated Roman numerals without a rail. So two more still lie dormant somewhere, in the hands of an enthusiast or collector, until they finally resurface like so many other chronology grails before them.
Source: Le Figaro
