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Cartier

Tank Cintrée

A rare and attractive yellow gold curved wristwatch with ink blue dial, made by Cartier London

Estimate
CHF70,000 - 140,000
€71,600 - 143,000
$76,500 - 153,000
CHF196,850
Lot Details
Manufacturer
Cartier
Year
Circa 1970
Case No
9514
Model Name
Tank Cintrée
Material
18K yellow gold
Calibre
Manual, Jaeger-LeCoultre cal. K840, 18 jewels
Bracelet/Strap
Leather
Clasp/Buckle
18K yellow gold Cartier deployant clasp
Dimensions
42.5mm Length and 21.5m Width
Signed
Case, dial and movement signed, case and clasp furthermore with English Hallmarks

Catalogue Essay

Introduced in 1921, the Tank Cintrée model was the largest and boldest variation of Cartier’s Tank line. With its long, slender, and gracefully arching case, the Cintrée is without a doubt one of the most beautiful watches made during the 20th century. The Cintrée’s highly curved case was designed to hug the curves of the wrist. The expansive dial and case combine straight lines, sensual curves, and crisp angles, resulting in a ‘modern’ wristwatch with a design far ahead of its time - so much so, in fact, that the design has spawned multiple re-editions; the latest one, just released in 2021, being a virtually perfect replica of the vintage model.

While a Tank Cintrée is already a very special piece, what makes the present watch even more extraordinary is the presence of the dark inky blue dial that almost looks black, along with the gold painted numerals. Such extraordinary pieces do not appear on the market often, no less in such impressive condition. Possibly unique, the present watch is the only known Cintrée with this dial configuration. The case is crisp with sharp hallmarks and numbers throughout, including the English marks corresponding to 1970 (denoted by " P") that are visible on the caseband and clasp. Even the clasp displays the same number as the case, attesting to the fact it was delivered to the watch. Furthermore, the maker's mark "JC" is visible on the case and clasp, which is the maker's mark for Cartier and represents Jacques Cartier. This maker's mark was seen on pieces made by Cartier London.

The present watch furthermore has a noteworthy provenance, as it was formerly in the collection of Ben Clymer, the founder of Hodinkee - the influential editorial and e-commerce journal in the world of watches. This timepiece has been immortalized as it has also been seen on various print media and watch journals, and featured in a video with Ben Clymer wearing the timepiece, recounting the story of how he acquired the watch and how Cartier New York had unofficially confirmed its existence and the dial colour being dark blue.

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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