A ‘Panthère’ brooch by Cartier, circa 1986, the polished gold panther playing with a brilliant-cut diamond ball, with brilliant-cut diamond highlights to the paws and circular-cut emerald eyes, mounted in 18ct gold, London import mark, signed ‘Cartier London’, numbered ‘R6719’, diamond weight approximately 0.80 carat, length 5.5cm. £3,000-£5,000

The panther is a longstanding motif employed by Cartier. It first made its appearance in 1917 on a diamond, onyx and platinum cigarette case, designed by Louis Cartier as a gift to his lover (and later head designer at Cartier), Jeanne Toussaint.
However the panther motif really found fame in the late 1940s when Cartier created several iconic panther jewels for the Duchess of Windsor (this being the first time that the panther was represented in its entirety); these items included a three-dimensional panther brooch of pavé sapphires and white and yellow diamonds, the big cat perched atop a 152.35 carat sapphire cabochon.
The panthère designs remain as popular today as they ever were and form an iconic collection of the house of Cartier.