The Journal

Throughout much of the late 19th and early 20th century, mechanical watches were considered almost exclusively a man’s domain. While there were a few exceptional commissions for women – most famously Abraham-Louis Breguet’s 1812 creation for Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples – these were rare, bespoke pieces rather than mass-market models. The prevailing perception was that women favoured jewellery over mechanics, and the market catered accordingly with cocktail watches: dainty, jewel-laden designs from houses like Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Jaeger-LeCoultre.