Many would say the Cartier Tank is the ideal pure dress watch. For me, it strikes a chord as an iconic model. I fell in love with its square design as a young man, and it has been a watch that has shaped me as a watch lover ever since. While the square design has remained unchanged for many years, the exterior has undergone numerous changes. Here, I would like to introduce three distinctive Cartier Tanks that have graced wrists for over 100 years.
Tank a Guichet
Remember the 2017 Phillips New York auction "Winning Icons," where the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona "Paul Newman" sold for an exceptional price? You may have noticed something interesting about "Lot 31." The 1931 Tank à Guichet sold for US$131,250, but this completely unorthodox design dates back three years, to 1928. It was a jumping-hour watch made in a year when interest in Arabic numerals was on the rise. Unlike modern jumping-hour and jumping-minute watches, such as A. Lange & Söhne's Zeitwerk, the Tank with guichet (small aperture) does not have a dial. Rather, it is a simple, flat metal plate with small apertures (guichets) for the hours and minutes. Cartier has produced various versions of this style of watch, each with a different aperture and crown position. The crown may be at either 12 or 3 o'clock, and the minute aperture may be at either 12 or 6 o'clock. These watches are extremely rare, and I hope to one day find a modern interpretation of this masculine Tank.
Tank Asymmetric Lozenge
While this angled design is relatively common in automotive and aviation watches, it's rare to see it in a dress watch. The original idea behind this design was to improve legibility when the hands are resting on the steering wheel or control stick of a car or airplane. While I'm not sure whether a watch with this angled design is suitable for cocktail parties or dinners, it likely had special significance when it was introduced in 1936. Even setting that aside, this is a very handsome timepiece and a different interpretation of the Tank concept. With its dial positioned at the corners at 6 and 12 o'clock, the Tank Asymmetrice marks a new departure, inspired by the avant-garde Tank à Guiché.
Tank Must de Cartier
Some of you may remember this watch, released in the late 1970s, when the Swiss watch industry was suffering from the quartz crisis. The Tank Must de Cartier collection was launched at a crucial time for public opinion in the luxury consumer goods industry. Cartier, one of the world's leading luxury houses, saw this as an opportunity to introduce a quartz watch unlike any other. It was an immediate success, recognized worldwide for its colorful, lacquered finish without numerals. The Tank Must de Cartier was available in both manual-winding and quartz versions, revitalizing the brand and bringing it to an even wider and more enthusiastic customer base.
