What is a Cartier Santos Galbée Ref. 1565 worth?

Public auction and dealer results for Ref. 1565 from November 2021 to November 2026 (five years, as the last three alone have too few) come to $1,450 to $2,250, with a median of $1,900 across 4 sales of this exact reference. The most recent was $1,050 at Antiquorum Hong Kong in October 2024. Condition, service history, and the original box and papers move an individual watch within that range.

What dial does the Ref. 1565 have?

A pale dial with Roman numerals, cataloged as silver or white. Sotheby's and Susannah Lovis catalog one example as silver; Susannah Lovis and WannaBuyAWatch catalog others as white, and some listings say cream or ivory. A pale dial can also warm toward cream with age. A Bonhams sale in 2012 cataloged one with applied gold numerals; no other record shows that, so treat such a dial with caution.

How is the 1565 different from the 1564 and the 1567?

The 1564 is the larger steel Galbée, about 29 × 41 mm, with a date at 6 on the Cal. 687. The 1567 is the small Galbée in steel and gold. The 1565 is the small model in steel only, with no date. Listings sometimes label a two-tone small Galbée as a 1565, so check the case back.

What should I check before buying a Ref. 1565?

Even brushing and polishing with no sign of heavy refinishing on the case and bracelet; a clean dial with crisp printing and at most a gentle warming of color; a sapphire crystal without deep scratches; a concealed clasp that closes firmly; and a quartz movement that keeps good time. The case back should carry the reference and serial number.

Cartier · Santos Galbée

Santos Galbée Steel, Quartz, Small Model

Ref. 1565c. 1998–2010sAlso cataloged as W20017D6, W20024D6

The Cartier Santos Galbée Ref. 1565 is the small 24 × 35 mm stainless steel quartz Santos Galbée made c. 1998–2010s on the Cartier quartz Cal. 157 cataloged by Fellows, with a silvered or white dial and Roman numerals.

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Sales of Ref. 1565 since Nov 2021: $1,450 to $2,250, median $1,900 across 4 sales of this exact reference. What's yours worth?

Only sales that name Ref. 1565, W20017D6 or W20024D6 count here. The last three years alone have too few, so this goes back five.

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Specifications

Reference: 1565; Stainless steel, quartz, small model
Year: c. 1998–2010s; Earliest dated example is circa 1998; dealers date others to the 2000s, and a Phillips catalog says the Santos line was discontinued in 2016
Movement: Quartz; Cartier quartz Cal. 157, per Fellows; Sotheby's catalogs it only as quartz
Case: 24 × 35 mm, Stainless steel
Dial: Silvered or white; Sotheby's and Susannah Lovis catalog silver; Susannah Lovis and WannaBuyAWatch catalog other examples as white, and cream or ivory also appear; Roman numerals, railroad minute track, hidden Cartier signature at X
Hands: Blued steel; Sword-shaped
Crystal: Sapphire; Sapphire per dealer listings
Strap: Integrated bracelet; Integrated steel Galbée bracelet with a concealed double folding clasp

Visual Description

The Ref. 1565 is the Santos Galbée at its small size: a 24 × 35 mm stainless steel case with the curved, or galbée, profile that gives the model its name, eight exposed screws on the bezel and a blue cabochon on the crown. The dial is silvered or white, with Roman numerals, a railroad minute track and the hidden Cartier signature, set off by blued steel sword hands. The steel bracelet runs straight out of the case and closes with a concealed clasp.

Reference Significance

The 1565 is the small all-steel Galbée, the companion to the larger Ref. 1564 and the two-tone Ref. 1567. It carries the Santos design, from the screws to the integrated bracelet, at a size that suits smaller wrists, and its long run, from the late 1990s into the 2010s, makes it one of the most available ways into the Santos family.

Its dial causes more confusion than anything else about it. The same layout of Roman numerals and railroad track is cataloged as silver, white, cream or ivory, and some listings describe the numerals as applied. Sotheby's and Susannah Lovis name silver; Susannah Lovis and WannaBuyAWatch name white for other examples. The records we found do not settle whether silver and white are one finish or two.

Historical Context

The Santos Galbée arrived in 1987 as a softer, curved version of the Santos, and the steel quartz models carried it into everyday wear. Antiquorum dates a 1565 with a bracelet marked 03/96 to the 1990s and Susannah Lovis dates one to circa 1998, while dealers date others through the 2000s; a Phillips catalog says the Santos line as a whole was discontinued in 2016. Fellows catalogs two 1565s with a signed Cartier quartz Cal. 157; Sotheby's describes its example only as quartz. The 1565 is listed under more than one catalog number: Antiquorum cataloged an example as 1565/W20017D6, and Susannah Lovis lists one from about 1998 as 1565/W20024D6.

What to Look For

The case and bracelet should show even brushing and polishing, with crisp edges around the screws and no sign of heavy refinishing; some fine wear is normal. Links should be tight, and the concealed clasp should close firmly.

The dial should be clean, with crisp printing. A gentle warming of a pale dial toward cream is common and acceptable. A dial with gilt or applied numerals is unusual enough to check against the case back and the movement before buying.

The sapphire crystal resists scratches, so deep marks suggest hard wear. The quartz movement should keep good time; a stopped watch usually needs a battery or a service rather than a repair.

Known Variants

Documented dial, case, and bracelet variations of Ref. 1565.

Silvered or White Roman Dial

The standard layout: a pale dial with Roman numerals, a railroad minute track and blued sword hands. Sotheby's and Susannah Lovis catalog some examples as silver, and Susannah Lovis and WannaBuyAWatch catalog others as white. Cream and ivory also appear, and age can warm a pale dial, so whether silver and white are one finish or two is not settled.

c. 1998–2010sStandard

How to tell it apart

What separates a Ref. 1565 from its neighbors, and what to check before you buy or sell one.

What is a Cartier Santos Galbée Ref. 1565 worth?: Public auction and dealer results for Ref. 1565 from November 2021 to November 2026 (five years, as the last three alone have too few) come to $1,450 to $2,250, with a median of $1,900 across 4 sales of this exact reference. The most recent was $1,050 at Antiquorum Hong Kong in October 2024. Condition, service history, and the original box and papers move an individual watch within that range.
What is the Santos Galbée Ref. 1565?: The small all-steel Santos Galbée: a 24 × 35 mm stainless steel case with eight exposed bezel screws and a blue cabochon crown, a silvered or white dial with Roman numerals, a railroad minute track and the hidden Cartier signature, blued steel sword hands, a sapphire crystal and the integrated steel bracelet with a concealed clasp. Quartz, made from the late 1990s into the 2010s.
What dial does the Ref. 1565 have?: A pale dial with Roman numerals, cataloged as silver or white. Sotheby's and Susannah Lovis catalog one example as silver; Susannah Lovis and WannaBuyAWatch catalog others as white, and some listings say cream or ivory. A pale dial can also warm toward cream with age. A Bonhams sale in 2012 cataloged one with applied gold numerals; no other record shows that, so treat such a dial with caution.
How is the 1565 different from the 1564 and the 1567?: The 1564 is the larger steel Galbée, about 29 × 41 mm, with a date at 6 on the Cal. 687. The 1567 is the small Galbée in steel and gold. The 1565 is the small model in steel only, with no date. Listings sometimes label a two-tone small Galbée as a 1565, so check the case back.
What should I check before buying a Ref. 1565?: Even brushing and polishing with no sign of heavy refinishing on the case and bracelet; a clean dial with crisp printing and at most a gentle warming of color; a sapphire crystal without deep scratches; a concealed clasp that closes firmly; and a quartz movement that keeps good time. The case back should carry the reference and serial number.