A tippler's summer: how could it be complete without a tonneau watch?

　　As an older and seasoned tippler, I have always had a soft spot for tonneau-shaped watches. Unfortunately, tonneau watches have not been in fashion over the past couple of years. However, wearing a timepiece has always been a matter unrelated to trends, hasn't it?

Cartier Tonneau Cintrée watch

　　If the wristwatch in its early days bore the suspicion of being a scaled-down pocket watch, then almost contemporaneously with this concept arose theTonneau-shaped watch(Tonneau Cintrée) firmly carved out a solid half of the wristwatch landscape.

　　As early as the beginning of the 20th century, Cartier had already designed the Tonneau Cintrée watch. In an era dominated by pocket watches, this design was used to craft lightweight, compact women's timepieces that conformed to the curves of a woman's wrist. It was only after discovering its popularity among men that it entered the men's watch sector, creating a huge fad.

　　Thus, we can observe that most classic tonneau watches are dainty and refined, featuring clean dials with Roman numerals marking the hours, and precious metal cases set with fine diamonds, resembling courteous gentlemen and gentlewomen.

Replica Vacheron Constantin Malte collection watch

　　In 1912, Vacheron Constantin opened up new possibilities for the tonneau watch. Coinciding with the rise of the Art Nouveau movement in France, the long, curved edges of the tonneau shape felt quite novel to people accustomed to round pocket watches, and its quirky, playful Arabic numerals were utterly irresistible. Although influenced by the subsequent Art Deco movement, where gemstones were set into watches, the numerals on the Vacheron Constantin tonneau watch gradually became more orderly to harmonise with them, yet the combination of the two formed an aura that was both proper and rebellious.

　　The tonneau-shaped watch can be said to be a sublimation of the wristwatch exterior; nowadays, almost every brand produces its own tonneau timepiece, though crafts and styles vary wildly.

Replica Franck Muller watch

　　Today you will find that the 'barrel' can store not only elegant red wine, but also intense whisky and wild beer. Franck Muller's famously 'crazy' tonneau watches of the 90s can be said to have sparked the wrist-alcohol craze of recent years; the 12 hours on its dial are marked by distinctive Arabic numerals, and whether in monochrome or multicolour, these variously sized, clawing yet harmoniously encircled digits leave an unforgettable impression.

　　In today's era where cushion-shaped watches are all the rage, the tonneau-shaped watch seems increasingly forgotten, yet it stands alone in its own distinct style—much like the seemingly gruff and blunt Mr Rochester, whose true elegance and rich inner world can only truly be seen, and fallen in love with, by Jane Eyre who loves him.