Visual Description
The Ref. 1280 is the small Panthère in 18k yellow gold, 22 × 30 mm including the lugs and about 5 mm thick. The case runs into an integrated gold bracelet with a double folding clasp signed Cartier, and the case back is secured by eight screws. The silvered or cream dial carries black Roman numerals and a railway minute track, read by blued steel hands under a sapphire crystal. Most documented examples are diamond-set, with stones on the bezel and sometimes on the crown.
Reference Significance
The 1280 is the small gold Panthère of the later 1990s, following the 8669 and the 107000, which share its size and metal. Auction houses usually print the number as 1280 2 or 1280/2. Its documented movement, the Cal. 157.06, is the clearest technical point separating it from the 8669, whose caliber no catalog we consulted names.
Historical Context
Cartier introduced the Panthère in 1983, and Sotheby's records that the line was discontinued in 2004 and relaunched in 2017. Dated 1280s run from 1995, when one was sold with a Cartier guarantee of 19 May, through a receipt of 1996 and an example of about 1998, to one whose box and papers are dated March 2002.
What to Look For
Read the case back for 1280 or 1280 2 and a serial beginning M or MG. The bracelet should have its links and a double folding clasp that locks securely. On diamond-set examples, look for a complete, even setting on the bezel and, where fitted, the crown. Ask for a movement photograph: catalogs give the Cal. 157.06 with 4 jewels, though Monaco Legend lists one example with a cal. 171. Boxes, guarantees and receipts, which several auction examples still have, help date a watch.
