White gold Cartier Cheich made US$3.38m at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, a Cartier watch record

A white gold Cartier Cheich sold for HK$26.5m with fees, equivalent to US$3.38m, at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong in a sale reported on 22 September 2026, the most valuable Cartier watch sold publicly and the most valuable quartz watch ever sold, according to SJX Watches.

The pre-sale estimate was a wide HK$8m to HK$40m, about US$1.0m to US$5.0m, so the price with fees landed inside the range and below the high estimate of about US$5.0m.

Cheich is French for sheikh. The design was originally conceived as a prize for winners of the Dakar Rally. Four originals were made in yellow gold, and the recipients included Thierry Sabine, the founder of the rally.

One of the originals went to Gaston Rahier, who won the rally in 1984 and 1985. Sotheby’s sold his watch in 2022 for a little over €1m with fees. That is a different watch, in a different currency, so the two prices are not a direct comparison. About 25 years after the originals, Cartier made one more Cheich, in white gold.

The white gold watch was first commissioned by a private collector, later passed to an Italian dealer and, several years ago, to its consignor. The buyer was anonymous.