In 1991, the Cape Cod watch was born under the bold pencil strokes of Henri d’Origny. The designer was supposed to make it a square watch. His creative freedom decided that it would be «a square in a rectangle». Both impertinent and rigorous, the Cape Cod overturns codes and freely connects styles. Its original case is composed of two «anchor chain» half links, a motif created by Robert Dumas in 1938. The motif inspired by a boat chain is anchored on the dials of the Cape Cod and reveals a plurality of fanciful touches.
 

This year, the Cape Cod is once again transformed: shimmering with dia- monds and carved in obsidian stone – a grey vitreous volcanic rock – or sand- blasted, gilded and lacquered, its dis- tinctive graphic shape plays with mate- rials and textures. Hovering between contrast and harmony, a first Cape Cod Chaîne d’ancre features a precious rose gold case set with 52 diamonds, fra- ming an obsidian dial stands out, illu- minated by interlaced links set with 181 diamonds. A second, smaller model matches the tone of its gemset steel case with the anthracite shades of the vol- canic dial and gemset anchor chains. Finally, a third similarly small-sized rose gold version set with 46 diamonds is distinguished by its sand-blasted gold dial adorned with gemset anchor chains.
 

Paired with a single- or double-tour strap in Chantilly-coloured or pearl grey alligator, crafted in the Hermès Horloger workshops, these new Cape Cod Chaîne d’ancre models display hours and minutes, swept over by slender gold or rhodium-plated hands.