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Away from the Fairways | TEE TIME

TANK IS A TANK THE TANK WATCH WAS BORN IN 1917 OF A POWERFUL VISION, THE CULMINATION OF A LENGTHY DESIGN PROCESS. IT WAS A TIMEPIECE WHICH SWEPT ASIDE TRADITION, SHOOK UP HABITS AND USHERED MODERN DESIGN INTO THE WORKSHOPS, DESTINED TO BECOME A WATCHMAKING ICON. NOW 100 YEARS OLD, THE TANK WATCH HAS NEVER BEEN SO NEW Tank Américaine, large model, steel. Mechanical movement with automatic winding HKGOLFER.COM

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Tank Louis Cartier, small & large model, pink gold. Mechanical movement with manual winding - 8971 MC

T

he Tank is a universal watch.

Its shape, as if governed by a golden ratio, is not quite square, not quite rectangular. By turns masculine and feminine, the Tank asser ts that freedom and elegance haveno gender. Loved by men and women of all generations, it is the ultimate eternally contemporary watch, made beautiful by its proper proportions.

From Gary Cooper to Andy Warhol, from Madonna to Catherine Deneuve, the Tank watch is worn like a code, a tacit allusion.

Since the very beginning, it has appealed to free-spirited men and women -free to appreciate its fine, understated design, enhanced by harmonious lines; free to choose a watch for its perfectly proportioned composition rather than the status it symbolises.

Fir s t c reate d in 192 2, t h e Ta n k Lo u is C a r t i e r s y m b o lis e s t h e quintessential Tank spirit. In a distinctive design that spans the century, the Louis Cartier watch features brancards with fine, taut lines, softened corners and horns incorporated into the case. Clear-cut lines and a strict, measured composition forge the powerful style and character of this pure, enduring and timeless creation.

Today the model offers two new faces, both powered by the 8971 MC mechanical movement with manual winding: a choice of pink or white gold in a women’s watch with diamond-set brancards or a fine, elegant pink gold model, a chic, incontrovertibly.

Designed in 1987 and launched in 1989, the Tank Américaine updates the cur ved case of the 1921 Tank Cintrée watch: the rec tangular 20

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shap e b e co m e s m o re co mp a c t , w hil e the brancards are round. Combining w atc h m a k i n g a n d s t y l e, i t p l ay s w i t h geometry, alternating stark and softened edges, straight lines and curves, rounded corners and angles. The Tank Américaine was also the first Cartier watch to offer a curved water-resistant case.

T he new Tank Américaine embodies t h e s p i r i t o f t h e o r i g i n a l Ta n k i n i t s co ntemp o r ar y, un d er s t ate d a es th etic .

Showcasing clean lines and a strong presence on the wrist, the eternally elegant model makes an utterly modern statement in presenting steel as a precious material.

Hesitating between square and re c tangle, Car tier chose a re c tangular form for one of its first watches - the Tank Cintrée, whose cur ved design hugs the wrist. A functional and aesthetic exercise, this watch was a precursor of the Tank Américaine of the 1980s.

Its power ful shape is delimited by a pair of brancards that structure the whole.

With this watch, Car tier achieves a true watchmaking prowess. Two versions - in HKGOLFER.COM

pink gold or platinum – reveal a skeleton movement that follows the curves of the case. Its transparent design only preserves the bare essentials: the hands, the chemin de fer and the overlapping gears in the b a ckgro un d , a ll co nt ain e d w i t hin t h e distinctive curve of the Tank Cintrée.

Conceive of a work of art, and this watch juxtaposes the elegance of a bold aesthetic with a singular, uncommon calibre.

W h e n c r e a t e d i n 19 9 6 , t h e Ta n k Française trans forme d the s t ylis tic features of the Tank watches. The case was attached to a metal bracelet, thereby r e co n f i g u r i n g t h e d e s i g n o f t h e s i d e brancards, dial with Roman numerals, “railtrack” minute circle, sword-shaped hands and a faceted winding crown adorned with a sapphire cabochon.

The shape asserts itself in the curved case and bracelet, which form a seamless continuity of lines, volume and material.

Its geometry is simultaneously softened and strengthened by bevelled brancards and the concave curves of the links: radical lines produced by watchmaking finishes.

This practical yet attractive wristwatch has now been liberated, free to combine the purity of steel with a diamond setting.

Tank Cintrée skeleton, pink gold model. Mechanical movement with manual winding - 9917 MC. Limited edition of 100 pieces

Tank Française, small model, steel set with brilliant-cut diamonds. Quartz movement

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