Cartier Tank Basculante - 1950s W/ EWC Movement

The Cartier Tank was one of the first wristwatches. Full stop!

Inspired by the Renault Tanks used on the battlefield in WWI — yes, true story. Revolutionary at the time, Louis Cartier took inspiration from the profile of the treads on a period Renault tank, and based the case on them by way of the of brancards doubling as the lugs themselves. Over the course of the 20^th Century, the Tank became the watch to wear. Silent movie stars like Rudolph Valentino, artists like Andy Warhol, and even Jackie Kennedy were all fans of the signature timepiece from the King of Jewelers and the Jeweler of Kings. An icon indeed in the truest sense of the word.

The model was first introduced in a few different case shapes which bore different names that intertwine with the inspiration behind them.

The example that we have here is a riff on one of those pieces — and a very, very special one indeed. 

Dating to the circa 1950, this piece features both an oversized rectangular case design as well as a very unusual party trick. Coming in at approximately 20mm x 39mm this piece was created as a solution to a problem that a variety of brands had been dealing with in the first half of the twentieth century: crystals shattering from active use. Utilizing an articulating & hinged inner frame, the Basculante was Cartiers solution. Simply put, the dial can be flipped on its face via the Y-axis. Crucially, because of the time that these pieces were produced, all of the case components were handmade and were not interchangeable among other models, so the components shared the same serial numbers and no two are alike. Thankfully, this example retails all of its original components.

Inside the case it features a classically-styled Cartier dial — white with printed black 'Roman' indices and an inner 'chemin de fer' minute track. The handset is a blued-steel 'spade' set. Powering this piece is a manual-winding movement from European Watch & Clock — an era-correct movement. Additionally, this example also comes fitted to a leather strap with a period-correct yellow gold deployant.

Given its age and precious metal construction, this piece is in excellent overall condition. Possibly unpolished, it shows normal signs of wear and light sleeve-polishing throughout, with clear and defined hallmarks. The dial inside has most likely been restored at a previous time and shows wear and degradation from age.

The Basculante has showed up in numerous forms over the years, but it are pieces from this era that they all draw inspiration from.