204 Cartier London A very rare and fine, Tank Cintrée, wristwatch in yellow gold, black roman numbers dial.

Estimate: € 20.000 –⁠ 40.000

Cartier’s contribution to the canon of 20th-century design extends far beyond the bounds of high jewelry and well into the realm of modernist elegance. If the maison is the architect of timeless taste, then the Tank Cintrée is its most poetic blueprint — a watch that first emerged in 1921 and has, over the decades, become one of the purest and most refined expressions of form meeting function. Elongated, curved, and impossibly thin, the Cintrée remains one of the most coveted designs to ever grace a wrist — or rather, to embrace it. Particularly during the 1960s and 70s, Cartier London, then operating semi-independently from the Paris maison, produced watches that were daring, rare, and imbued with an unmistakably British confidence. It is in this context that the Tank Cintrée London was born: a gesture of couture horology, brimming with quiet rebellion and understated glamour. The present example, executed in warm 18K yellow gold, is a sublime representation of that very ethos. Its curved rectangular case hugs the wrist with natural grace, while the floating Roman numerals stretch languidly across a silvered dial that proudly bears the Cartier signature. The absent chemin-de-fer minute track give ariation to the dial with its hands and Roman numerals give the impression of being suspended on the dial. The beaded winding crown showcasing a cabochon sapphire represent the epitome hallmark of Cartier’s inimitable visual language. Preserved in exquisite condition, this example retains its case definition, and the fine satin finishing typical of vintage London production, as well as crisp caseback numbers and London hallmarks to both caseband and deployant clasp. With its elongated silhouette and subtly vaulted profile, this Cintrée doesn’t shout — it whispers in impeccable French, with a British accent. Elegant to its core and impossibly rare, this is not merely a wristwatch — it is a distilled Cartier philosophy, and an enduring ode to 20th-century design at its very finest.