The Cartier Baignoire Allongée is a stretched oval watch. Cartier sold the shape in the 1960s and 1970s at its London shop. Replicas come from Chinese factories and sell for about $180 to $700. Most copies run on quartz. A small number use hand-wound or automatic movements. No replica matches the original case curve, and none carries a Cartier movement.
What the Baignoire Allongée Is
Baignoire means bathtub. The standard Baignoire has a rounded oval case. The Allongée is the long version: the case stretches toward the lugs, so the watch reads as a slim bar on the wrist. Vintage examples carry Roman numerals, a chemin de fer minute track, blued steel hands, and a sapphire cabochon in the crown. Case metal was yellow gold or white gold. Sizes vary by decade and by market, so measure a specific piece instead of trusting a model name.
Cartier still lists Baignoire models. The current line is smaller and rounder than the vintage Allongée.
What Replicas Get Right
- Outline: most copies hold the long oval silhouette.
- Dial layout: Roman numerals and the rail track appear on the better dials.
- Case size: common replica sizes run 22 mm wide by 44 mm long, close to some vintage examples.
What They Get Wrong
- Crown: the cabochon is glass on cheap copies, synthetic spinel on mid-tier copies, and almost never real sapphire.
- Case profile: the original curves in two planes. Copies bend in one.
- Movement: a quartz copy has no winding feel and no sweep.
- Gold: gold-plated brass and 316L steel are common. Solid 18k gold is not.
Price Bands
$180 to $300 buys a quartz copy with a mineral crystal and a plated case. $300 to $500 adds a sapphire crystal, a steel case, and better dial print. $500 to $700 buys a hand-wound or automatic copy, sometimes with a decorated movement. Sellers use factory nicknames. Those names change, and a name in a listing does not prove the source.
Checks Before You Pay
- Ask for a photo of the case back and the movement.
- Ask for the case width and length in millimeters.
- Confirm the crystal material in writing.
- Confirm the return address and the return window.
- Pay with a method that allows a chargeback.
Legal and Shipping Notes
Counterfeit watches are illegal to import into the United States. Customs can seize a package, and the buyer loses the money. Sellers ship from China with false declarations. That practice adds risk, not protection. Cartier holds trademarks on the name, the dial layout, and the case shape.