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 · Santos
Cartier Santos 41 mm Meteorite 18k
Reference 49371OR.85
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Cartier
- Collection
- Santos
- Model
- Cartier Santos 41 mm Meteorite 18k
- Reference number
- 49371OR.85
- Year / era
- 2006 · 2000s — modern production
- Complication
- Chronograph
- Movement
- In-house manual-winding
- Case material
- 18k rose gold
- Dial type
- Meteorite
- Strap / bracelet
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Water resistance
- 500 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 41 mm
- Case thickness
- 12.6 mm
- Case material
- 18k rose gold
- Bezel
- Bidirectional 24-hour Cerachrom
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Meteorite
- Hands
- Faceted dauphine hands, polished by hand
- Indexes
- Applied faceted white-gold indexes
- Bracelet / strap
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Clasp / buckle
- Pin buckle in matching case metal
- Water resistance
- 500 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 51F — In-house manual-winding
- Movement type
- Automatic with micro-rotor
- Frequency
- 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 5 days
- Number of jewels
- 45 jewels
- Complications
- Chronograph
- Functions
- Hours, minutes, seconds, date
- Watchmaker
- Assembled and regulated by a single watchmaker, who signs off the piece before casing.
Production & market
- Production period
- 2006 – 2020
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Thin secondary-market supply — pricing is set piece by piece at auction.
Designer
Louis Cartier
The reference was drawn by the manufacture's internal design office, where case, dial and movement architects work alongside the watchmakers rather than as an outside commission.
Historical significance
Cartier Santos 41 mm Meteorite 18k sits within Cartier's Santos line, introduced in 2006. It carries the house codes established since 1847 — 18k rose gold 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 bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
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.