Ronde Louis Cartier XL

The sparkle of moonlight on the proud mane of an Andalusian horse is magically captured in this Cartier watch in grisaille enamel. The shadows and shafts of light conjure up all the shades of midnight blue like an enchanted nocturnal vision.This ancient enamelling technique takes its name from the shades of grey, black and white. Here it follows the drawing with the precision of an engraver but Cartier has deflected the grey tones towards blue. As in a painting, marine blue is the base that supports and magnifies the white. The craftsman coats the dial with brilliant blue enamel and fires it. Then, with a fine brush, he progressively draws the motif in Limoges white, which evolves during a series of six to eight different firings. The enamelling of this piece takes almost 40 hours to complete.Through painting, the craftsman can shade the whites to bring out shadows, contrasts and plays of light to create relief.