At the turn of the 20th century, the streets of Paris were brimming with invention, industry, and imagination. Art Nouveau was finding its rhythm, jazz was starting to arrive, and the world’s elite were flocking to the French capital not just for culture, but for style.
Amidst this creative chaos, Cartier was fast-becoming the defining symbol of this new era and its growing presence within Europe’s cultural hub of modernity was reflected in its iconic watch collections: sleek, geometric, and forward-thinking, tapping into the Art Deco movement while remaining deeply rooted in the French luxury Maison’s expert craftsmanship for which it had become renowned.
From the cockpit-ready Santos-Dumont to the now-iconic Tank, Cartier decidedly led the charge in designing watches for a fast-changing world that boasted square dials, a sapphire cabochon, and a bold vision of what a men’s wristwatch could (and should) be.
Now, over a century later, Cartier is reaching back into the vault to reimagine two icons from the golden age of watchmaking. At this year’s Watches & Wonders 2025, the French Maison once again takes centre stage with two masterful releases: a newly sized, mechanically enhanced Tank Louis Cartier, and a rare return of the Tank à Guichets, a 1920s digital rebel that still feels ahead of its time today.
The Tank Louis Cartier
First released in 1922, just five years after the original Tank, the Tank Louis Cartier took the sharp, masculine angles of the Normale and softened them. The case was elongated, the profile stretched, and almost instantly, it became the blueprint for Cartier’s most enduring silhouette — a rectangular timepiece with as much cultural relevance today as it had over a century ago. It was simple, elegant, and unmistakably Parisian.
This year, the Tank Louis Cartier steps forward once again with a fresh in-house automatic calibre. The 1899 MC pays tribute to the year Cartier opened its flagship boutique at 13 rue de la Paix, which has remained the beating heart of the Maison’s style ever since. The new movement allows for a larger case size without disrupting the Tank’s elegant proportions.
Available in both rose and yellow gold, the Tank Louis Cartier arrives with many of the manufacture’s defining signatures still intact: Roman numerals, a chemin-de-fer minute track, sword-shaped hands, and a beaded crown set with a sapphire cabochon.
Of course, Cartier could’ve pushed this into novelty territory. Instead, the French watchmaker has stayed true to the original spirit of the piece, letting the lines do the talking and the Maison’s enviable movements do the work. This feels like we’re seeing the contemporary Tank at its most confident – it’s bigger, arguably better, but still discreet.
The Tank à Guichets Returns
While the Tank Louis Cartier was all about subtle evolution, the Tank à Guichets has always been a bold outlier. I mean, just look at it. This piece is pure watchmaking theatre.
Originally launched in 1928, it was Cartier’s answer to the modern machine age. No hands. No dial. Just two windows cut into a solid gold case – one for jumping hours, one for dragging minutes. It was a bold Cartier release responding to a world that was moving faster with the steady revolution of planes, trains and automobiles. Nearly a century later, Watches & Wonders has seen another radical release from the French trendsetters.
This year’s Tank à Guichets revival lands under the Cartier Privé collection — the Maison’s home for horologists, collectors and connoisseurs. It’s powered by the hand-wound 9755 MC calibre, a bespoke movement developed exclusively for this release, and offered in two distinct configurations.
The first comes in yellow gold, rose gold or platinum, reviving the original vertical aperture layout with hours at 12 o’clock and minutes at 6. The second is a limited edition of 200 pieces in platinum, reinterpreting a 1930s design with the apertures positioned across the dial (if we can call it that) at a confident diagonal angle – a bold nod to Cartier’s most experimental era. The crown, in true throwback fashion, sits proudly at 12 o’clock.
With these two releases, Cartier isn’t trying to chase trends, nor is it trying to reinvent the wheel. At Watches & Wonders 2025, the release of the Tank Louis Cartier is a contemporary take on a timeless classic, whilst the Tank à Guichets reminds us that Cartier’s idea of minimalism is never simple. It’s a confident reach into the past to pull something iconic into the present, turning a century of watchmaking history into a modern-day masterstroke.
