Cartier - The Geneva Watch Auction: XIX featuring the Guido Mondani Collection Geneva Saturday, May 11, 2024 | Phillips

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  • Condition Report

  • Manufacturer: Cartier
    Year: Circa 1931
    Case No: 27388, 27457 and 27388 in the inside caseback
    Model Name: Tank à Guichets
    Material: 18K white gold
    Calibre: Manual, 19 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: Suede
    Clasp/Buckle: 18K white and pink gold deployant clasp
    Dimensions: 22mm Width and 30mm Length
    Signed: Case, dial and movement singed, case and movement furthermore stamped European Watch and Clock Co.
    Literature: The present watch is illustrated in White Cartier Bianco by Osvaldo Patrizzi, page 132.

  • Catalogue Essay

    The present model is an indelible part of Cartier's history, and represents what the brand is best known for: merging form with function. A variant of the original Tank wristwatch, the Tank à Guichets was first introduced in 1928. Featuring jumping hours at the upper portion of the dial, the watch also displayed a minutes indicator at 6 o'clock. The Tank à Guichets was first released in 1928, evolving from the first Tank model of 1917. The watch was a modern masterwork of design, where less is more. Gone are the hands, and in their place ‘guichets’ – apertures – for the hours and minutes. Its name derives from the apertures, which "jump" as the time advances. "Jump Hour" wristwatches were particularly popular in the 1920s and 1930s.

    Made in Paris (as seen by the European Watch and Clock Co. Inc France engraving on the caseback), the present watch cased in white gold is an exceptional specimen .The case is remarkably well-preserved, exhibiting strong hallmarks and crisp numbers throughout, and displays the maker's mark "EJ" and French hallmarks. The condition of the timepiece is especially remarkable when one considers the age of the timepiece.

  • Artist Biography

    Cartier

    French

    With the Constitution of 1848 came a new standard for luxury in France. Founded one year prior by Louis-Francois Cartier, the house of Cartier was one of the first to use platinum in jewelry making. This incredibly expensive material became the stepping-stone for Cartier to experiment in form, mechanisms and attitude. It helped men move from pocket watches to wristwatches, effectively making the watch much more functional and prominent in a man's overall wardrobe.

    Cartier did not only touch on functionality. Inspired by a commissioned painting by George Barbier featuring a black panther at the feet of an elegantly bejeweled woman, Cartier began incorporating wild animals in his designs—most notably, Cartier Panthère rings, bangle bracelets and watches. Yet it wasn't until the late 1960s that the house of Cartier debuted their iconic yellow and rose gold LOVE collection, which includes the famous bracelet that only a special screwdriver can open. 

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209

A highly attractive white gold rectangular jump hour wristwatch with movement by European Watch and Clock Co.

Circa 1931
22mm Width and 30mm Length
Case, dial and movement singed, case and movement furthermore stamped European Watch and Clock Co.

Estimate
CHF100,000 - 200,000 
€102,000-204,000
$109,000-219,000

Place Advance Bid
Contact Specialist

Alexandre Ghotbi
Deputy Chairman, Watches, Head of Watches, Europe, and Middle East

+41 79 637 17 24
AGhotbi@phillips.com

Tiffany To
Head of Sale, Geneva

+41 79 460 55 88
TiffanyTo@phillips.com

The Geneva Watch Auction: XIX featuring the Guido Mondani Collection

Geneva Auction 11 - 12 May 2024