Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Cartier · Privé
Cartier Privé 36 mm Meteorite Grade
Reference 51217OR.66
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Cartier
- Collection
- Privé
- Model
- Cartier Privé 36 mm Meteorite Grade
- Reference number
- 51217OR.66
- Year / era
- 1965 · 1960s — pre-quartz mechanical era
- Complication
- Annual calendar
- Movement
- In-house manual-winding
- Case material
- Grade 5 titanium
- Dial type
- Meteorite
- Strap / bracelet
- Milanese mesh
- Water resistance
- 500 m
- Limited-edition status
- Limited edition of 188 pieces
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 36 mm
- Case thickness
- 12.6 mm
- Case material
- Grade 5 titanium
- Bezel
- Bidirectional 24-hour Cerachrom
- Crystal
- Box sapphire with AR coating
- Dial
- Meteorite
- Hands
- Faceted dauphine hands, polished by hand
- Indexes
- Printed minute track with applied batons
- Bracelet / strap
- Milanese mesh
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 500 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 33A — In-house manual-winding
- Movement type
- Manual-winding
- Frequency
- 36,000 vph (5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 38 hours
- Number of jewels
- 45 jewels
- Complications
- Annual calendar
- Functions
- Dive time, running seconds
- Watchmaker
- The calibre is built in-house and adjusted in five positions before delivery.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1965 – 1972
- Limited-edition quantity
- 188 pieces
- Current market information
- Thin secondary-market supply — pricing is set piece by piece at auction.
Designer
Emmanuel Gueit
Emmanuel Gueit came from a family of Geneva jewellers and was barely into his twenties when he drew the oversized Royal Oak Offshore in 1993 — a watch the house's traditionalists resisted and collectors turned into an icon.
Historical significance
Cartier Privé 36 mm Meteorite Grade sits within Cartier's Privé line, introduced in 1965. It carries the house codes established since 1847 — grade 5 titanium case, meteorite dial and in-house manual-winding — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
- The case is finished by hand, alternating polished and satin-brushed surfaces in a single pass so the edges stay razor sharp.
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
The House
Cartier
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1847
- Founder
- Louis-François Cartier
- Headquarters
- France
- Tier
- Luxury
- Major collections
- Santos, Tank, Ballon Bleu, Panthère, Pasha, Baignoire, Cle, Privé
- Signature technologies
- Hand-applied guilloché dials · Proprietary case-hardening and polishing · In-house hairspring production
- Famous movements
- In-house manual-winding · In-house automatic chronograph · In-house automatic, chronometer certified · In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer
- Notable watches
- Cartier Santos 43 mm Mother-of-pearl Sapphire (1976) · Cartier Santos 36 mm Silvered 18k (1986) · Cartier Santos 44 mm Salmon Grade (1992) · Cartier Santos 43 mm Green Carbon (1980)
Brand history
Cartier has spent more than 179 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Santos, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Louis-François Cartier established Cartier in 1847, working from France at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Cartier calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1847
Louis-François Cartier founds Cartier in France.
1887
Cartier earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces Cartier to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Cartier enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Cartier continues to produce Santos, Tank, Ballon Bleu and other icons in limited numbers.