The curtains were drawn to shield the display cases from prying eyes. Beware of leaving them open for more than 15 seconds, or a piercing alarm will sound immediately. Before that, one must navigate from a keypad to a doorbell, from an anonymous door to a double security airlock: the Cartier collection, hidden among several Geneva annexes, is protected like a piece of treasure.

The meeting room with its plush carpet is anonymous, mundane. Yet the contents of the wall display cases justify these stringent security measures: bodice fronts, lacquer or turquoise and lapis lazuli marquetry cases, a scarab belt brooch in smoky quartz and Egyptian faience, and a necklace weighted with an Australian opal. There is also a gold, silver and emerald bracelet from around 1880, still preserved in its original case, dating back to when Cartier was still located on Boulevard des Italiens in Paris. There, a rock crystal clock from 1914; and over there, a Santos-Dumont watch from 1912, not far from a cigarette case from 1938 that was engraved for Marlene Dietrich. Occasionally, Pascale Lepeu, the director, takes them out for closer admiration, placed on trays or mounted on busts.

Welcome to the ordinary room where exhibition curators from around the world converge: they discover the jewelry or timepieces it holds, to decide which to borrow for their monographs or displays in Dallas, Berlin, Paris, Tokyo, London or Shanghai. Cartier remains attentive to how its loans are used but willingly plays along.

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