Ballon Bleu De WSBB0029 replica

In July, Sotheby’s released a Cartier tricolor gold bandana watch, which attracted a lot of attention. This watch will be auctioned at the autumn sale. I don’t usually discuss the market, so let’s delve into this legendary Cartier Cheich, of which only four pieces exist in the world.

The Cartier tricolor gold bandana is not a mass-produced model but a prize from the Paris Dakar Rally, making it very special. This auction features the prize of legendary Belgian champion motorcyclist Gaston Rahier. The late Belgian off-road motorcycle rider Gaston Rahier went through great efforts to get this watch, as it was awarded for winning the Paris Dakar Rally.

Cartier was a sponsor of the race at the time, and they got the idea from the Paris Dakar Rally to create the Cheich watch, starting a Cartier challenge. The challenge stated that if a rider could win the championship in the same racing category for two consecutive years, they would receive the Cheich watch as a memento.

Gaston Rahier, who won the rally, was the first and last rider to receive this honor, as the challenge ended in 1986. Other participants couldn’t catch up to Rahier, and Cartier produced a very limited number of these watches. Besides one given to Cartier‘s then-chairman Alain Dominique Perrin and one to Gaston Rahier, the other two remain with official Cartier. Thus, there are only four in the world.

At that time, a diamond lady’s version was even prepared for female riders, but before the other two could be awarded, the challenge ended, and they remain within Cartier.