Nina Dyer (1930–1965) was a British-Indian model. Celebrated for her beauty and elegance, she was one of Cartier’s most famous clients, with a particular penchant for the Maison’s panther designs.
Nina Dyer spent her childhood in London, before moving to Paris in 1949 to begin a career in modeling. There, she rubbed shoulders with members of the Café Society, and in 1953 began an affair with Dutch baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza, the heir to a steel empire. They married the following year and separated in 1956. Dyer then became one of the most iconic figures of Parisian high society. She was a regular attendee at society events and parties, and in 1957 met the man who was to become her second husband: the Franco-Swiss prince, Harvard graduate, and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadruddin Aga Khan.
A pious man and committed environmental philanthropist, Prince Sadruddin gifted his wife an imposing Cartier cliquet brooch representing a panther in diamond and sapphire. The clasp was concealed beneath a diamond, which could be replaced by a sapphire and diamond model or a coral cabochon. Dyer could also be seen sporting a bracelet and a ring featuring the same realistic panther, together with a set of matching feline accessories.
In 1958, Nina Dyer ordered a cigarette case and a powder case bearing the same motif. Two years later, at her request, two evening bags were created. The first was covered with an antique Persian-print fabric, onto which were affixed two feline heads made from diamond and sapphire. The second was made from black velvet, its handle composed of a yellow gold bracelet incorporating two panther busts.
