Watch Paparazzi

Singer Elton John spotted wearing Cartier

The 'I'm Still Standing' music video, shot on the Côte d'Azur in 1983, is one of pop music's most visually exuberant documents — and sharp-eyed watch spotters will note that Elton John's wrist is as considered as the rest of his ensemble. Strapped to it is an 18k yellow gold Cartier Santos fully loaded with a pavé diamond dial and a diamond-set bezel, a configuration that places it firmly at the luxury apex of the Santos family.

The Santos collection traces its origins to 1904, when Louis Cartier designed a flat-cased, legible wristwatch for his friend Alberto Santos-Dumont, the pioneering aviator who needed to time his flights without fumbling for a pocket watch. The distinctive square case with exposed screws on the bezel and integrated bracelet became one of the most recognisable silhouettes in watchmaking. The generation of Santos produced through the late 1970s and 1980s — the era of John's example — runs on the ETA 2671, a reliable Swiss automatic movement with a 40-hour power reserve, housed in a slim profile that sits elegantly on the wrist.

This diamond variant — featuring a full pavé dial and a single row of brilliant-cut diamonds on the bezel, complemented by diamond-set screws on the case — was a flagship offering that Cartier positioned squarely at high jewellery clients. The combination of the warm yellow gold case and the icy white diamond paving creates a visual contrast that remains highly desirable among collectors of 1980s Cartier. Examples in strong condition with original bracelet command serious attention at auction and on the secondary market.

Elton John's relationship with extravagant jewellery and luxury goods is well documented — his collections of art, couture, and accessories are the stuff of auction legend. Choosing a diamond-set Santos for what would become one of his most enduring visual statements was entirely consistent with his persona at the height of his commercial reinvention in the early 1980s.

On today's grey market, a fully set 18k yellow gold Santos of this generation with diamond dial and bezel in good condition trades in the region of $28,000–$32,000 depending on completeness of documentation and bracelet condition. It remains a coveted collector piece — a confluence of horological history, Cartier craftsmanship, and genuine pop-culture provenance.