HIP TO BE SQUARE
Watches come in all shapes and sizes, and the square watch has plenty of celeb endorsement
What do three of Hollywood’s best known Toms Cruise Hiddleston and Holland have in common with late celebrity trio Muhammad Ali Andy Warhol and Lady Di? All are lovers of the square watch And if you assume an angular case is a fancy take on the OG round watch think again Square got there first and it was all thanks to a couple of celebs from a different age
Most people have heard of the Wright brothers but who did what in the race to get one over on gravity is a matter of some dispute In some parts of the world the true aviation pioneer is believed to be Alberto Santos Dumont The son of wealthy Brazilian coffee growers he was fascinated by everything mechanical from a young age He started off racing motorised tricycles before turning his hand to aircraft
Orville and Wilbur Wright’s famous flight in was only witnessed by a couple of people allowing some doubt over its authenticity Santos Dumont was a showman flying his early airships around the Eiffel tower When he made his first heavier than air flight in it was in front of officials and members of the public in Paris
One of Santos Dumont’s celebrity friends was Louis Cartier of growing jewellery empire fame Santos Dumont told his friend that a pocket watch was not a practical time telling device while trying to control his experimental flying machines at the turn of the th century the men’s wristwatch was not yet a thing Cartier made his friend a beautiful square dialled watch The groundbreaking design coupled with the fame of its wearer meant that the idea of putting the watch on sale to the general public was a no brainer It became one of Cartier’s classic designs and is a mainstay of its range today
Square got there first but of course it didn’t stay the dominant shape for wristwatches In WW soldiers started strapping pocket watches to their wrists for similarly utilitarian reasons and soon watch companies pivoted to making watches specifically for the wrist
But since the late th century watch companies have been throwing off the shackles and mixing things up just for fun The square watch is on the rise and they are available across the price range from entry level all the way up to Oscar winner