Lot 462

Cartier à Paris / European Watch & Clock Co. Inc., "Tank Etanche", Case No. 26121, Movement No. 27364, 25 x 37 mm, April 3rd, 1931
An important, early water-resistant wristwatch
Case: 18k gold, push back, 18k gold deployant clasp. Dial: off-white. Movm.: bridge movement, ébauche LeCoultre for European Watch & Clock Co. Inc..
Legend has it that the Pasha of Marrakesh asked Cartier in the early 1930s to create him a timepiece that he could wear while swimming in his pool. Cartier chose their popular square "Tank" model for this task - this proved to be a challenge, however, because form watches are generally much harder to make completely water-resistant than round versions; the angles of quadrangular or square cases do not allow a perfect fit of the crystal and the seal. The problem was solved by a two-part rectangular case surrounded by a caoutchouc seal and held together by tiny screws.
Only very few examples of the Cartier "Tank Etanche" were ever produced. A similar model, also from 1931, was sold at Sotheby’s in Geneva in May 2000 for circa 90,000 Swiss francs.