The story of Cartier’s Tank watch was born on the premise that its boss, Louis Cartier was really not into the Art Nouveau movement, what with its loud flourish that revolved around plants and flowers. In short, he was not maximalist.

Another backstory to the Tank’s creation: he wanted to create a seamless watch design that could blend the strap and the case. As surprising as it may sound, that was something that was not yet prevalent in the market back then.

Suffice to say, he managed to do it, and in 1907, Cartier launched a lean and rectangular case watch named the Tank. As for the watch’s moniker? It was said that Louis Cartier took his inspiration after Renault tanks (the bezel of the watch was fashioned after the treads of the tank when viewed from the top).

Fast forward a hundred years later and the Tank has spawned numerous iterations like the Cintree, the Arrondie and the Basculante. But the most popular among them have to be the slim Americaine from 1989, the all-metal Francaise from 1996,  the Art Deco-style Louis Cartier from 1922, and the curved and elongated Cintree.  

These four series are the focus of the 100th anniversary pieces this year, with updates that range from a skeletonised Cintree to two new face designs for the Louis Cartier. While we will be sharing more info on the new facelifts for the four collections in the coming days, we show here how this timepiece has always been the choice for the stylish set.