The Cartier Tank Watch

The only dedicated monograph on the Tank, written by Franco Cologni and first published in 1998. Cologni had direct access to Cartier's production records and design archives in his role as a senior executive of the company, and the book draws on that access for its treatment of individual Tank references and their histories.

The Tank was introduced in 1917 and has remained one of the most influential watch designs of the twentieth century. Cologni traces the form from Louis Cartier's original concept through the branching of the family into distinct references — the Tank Louis Cartier, the Tank Américaine, the Tank Cintrée, the Tank Française — and the evolution of each across the decades.

Contenuto

The design origins of the Tank form in the First World War period, the successive references introduced across the twentieth century, the complications produced within the Tank case, and the cultural history of a watch that has appeared on the wrists of a remarkably consistent set of figures — from royalty and film stars to heads of state. The 2023 edition adds a chapter covering new Tank models introduced since 2017.

Dove trovarlo

All four editions are findable secondhand, with the 2023 Flammarion/Rizzoli edition currently in print. Earlier editions (1998, 2012, 2017) circulate in the specialist book and watch market. The 1998 first edition is the most sought after.

Citato in

The standard reference for the Cartier Tank glossary entry and related auction catalogue citations. Specialist auction houses including Christie's, Sotheby's, and Phillips routinely cite Cologni for individual Tank references.