Cartier · Tank Chinoise

Tank Chinoise, Original

Tank Chinoise (1922)Launched 1922; examples c. 1923–1970s

The original Cartier Tank Chinoise, launched in 1922 and made without a reference number, is a square 18k yellow gold Tank of about 23 × 30 mm with raised end bars, hand-wound, with examples dated from about 1923 to the 1970s.

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Two recent sales of the Tank Chinoise (1922)

  • May 2026Antiquorum GenevaLot 98, Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces, Geneva, 9 May 2026. Cataloged as "CARTIER, PARIS, TANK CHINOISE, 18K YELLOW GOLD", circa 1950's: 23 x 30 as cataloged (no units given), manual wind, caliber 21 with 17 jewels, case no. 034890/65098, movement no. 5074, leather strap with an 18k yellow gold Cartier deployant clasp; case, movement and dial graded very good, overhaul recommended. No reference printed. Antiquorum's "Sold:" figure; the lot page does not say whether it includes the buyer's premium.$22,400
  • Jun 2024FinarteLot 127, Fine Watches, Milan, 10 Jun 2024. Cataloged as "Cartier Tank Chinoise, 40s": 18k gold rectangular case n.32246-27688, 31 x 23 mm, hand-winding movement by European Watch Company, cream dial with painted Roman numerals, on an 18k gold Cartier brick-links bracelet with a rose gold deployant buckle stamped 32246-11133; the specialist's note calls it one of the best preserved vintage Tank Chinoise to appear at auction. No reference printed. Sold; "The price includes buyer's premium".$88,150

Two sales are a rough guide. See them in the calculator.

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Specifications

Reference
Tank Chinoise (1922)
No reference number, square case with end bars, manual wind
Year
Launched 1922; examples c. 1923–1970s
Christie's, Sotheby's and Monaco Legend give 1922 for the launch; dated examples run from about 1923 to the 1970s
Movement
Manual-wind
European Watch & Clock Co., LeCoultre or Cartier-signed movements, by example
Case
About 23 × 30 mm, 18k Yellow Gold
Square case with a raised bar across each end; catalogs give 23 × 30 mm or 24 × 31 mm, and some 23 × 23 mm. Single examples of 21 × 28 mm, 19 × 26 mm and 26 × 35 mm are also documented
Dial
White or silvered
Painted Roman numerals, radial on many examples; signed Paris on examples of the 1960s and 1970s
Hands
Blued steel
Bâton, sword or épée shapes by example; gold hands on one example of the 1920s
Strap
Leather
Cartier deployant clasps in yellow or pink gold; some examples on an 18k gold Cartier link bracelet

Visual Description

The Tank Chinoise is a square Tank. Christie's describes its case as square with raised bars at both ends overlapping the sides and rounded lugs, and most examples are about 23 mm wide: catalogs give 23 × 30 mm or 24 × 31 mm, and some 23 × 23 mm.

Dials are white or silvered, with painted Roman numerals, radial on many examples, and blued steel hands in bâton, sword or épée shapes. Many examples have a sapphire-set crown, octagonal on some. Every example with a stated color in the records we found is 18k yellow gold, worn on a leather strap, most often with a Cartier deployant clasp in yellow or pink gold, or on an 18k gold Cartier link bracelet.

Reference Significance

This page covers the Tank Chinoise made without a reference number, from its launch to the 1970s. Cartier later revived the design as numbered references, in the Collection Privée Cartier Paris from about 2004 and in its Privé collection in 2022; those fall outside this archive's scope.

Most examples share the square case about 23 mm wide. Three other sizes appear once each in the records we found: a 21 × 28 mm example of the 1950s, a 19 × 26 mm example of the 1960s, and a 26 × 35 mm example made in the 1960s that Antiquorum catalogs with case and movement signed European Watch & Clock Co.

Historical Context

Christie's gives 1922 for the launch of the Tank Chinoise, in a note that refers to Franco Cologni's book on the Tank, and Sotheby's and Monaco Legend give the same year.

Antiquorum catalogs an example made about 1923 as one of the first Tank Chinoise, with a movement signed European Watch & Clock Co., and records one made in New York in 1946 and one made in Paris in 1970, each with a Cartier certificate. Other dated examples fall about 1930 and about 1950, and Cartier Paris examples with movements signed Cartier continue from about 1960 into the 1970s.

Catalog dates for the later Paris examples are loose. Antiquorum dated case numbers 033642 and 033646 to the 1970s and to about 1960 in the same year and dates 034890 to the 1950s, while Sotheby's dates 031781 to about 1975.

What to Look For

Start with the case: a square 18k yellow gold case with a raised bar across each end and Cartier case numbers, with no reference number. The movement should be hand-wound and fit the period: European Watch & Clock Co. on early examples, LeCoultre on one of about 1950, signed Cartier on Paris examples of the 1960s and 1970s.

Check the clasp against the case: Sotheby's catalogs one example with a non-matching clasp and Christie's another with an associated buckle. Look closely at the dial printing, the end bars and the crown.

Known Variants

Documented dial, case, and bracelet variations of Tank Chinoise (1922).

About 23 × 30 mm

The size most catalogs record: a square case about 23 mm wide, measured 23 × 30 mm or 24 × 31 mm, or 23 × 23 mm in some catalogs. Movements are signed European Watch & Clock Co. on examples of the 1920s to 1940s, LeCoultre on one of about 1950 and Cartier on Paris examples of the 1960s and 1970s.

c. 1923–1970sDocumented at Christie's, Antiquorum and Sotheby's

Smaller Case, 21 × 28 mm

A hand-wound yellow gold example of the 1950s measuring 21 × 28 mm, cataloged as made by Cartier France, with a white dial, black Roman numerals, blued steel hands and a sapphire-set crown.

1950sDocumented by Monaco Legend

Smaller Case, 19 × 26 mm

An 18k yellow gold example of the 1960s measuring 19 × 26 mm, with a dial signed Paris, an eight-sided crown and an 18k yellow gold Cartier deployant clasp.

1960sDocumented by Amsterdam Vintage Watches

Larger Case, 26 × 35 mm

An 18k yellow gold example made in the 1960s measuring 26 × 35 mm, with a silver guilloché dial bearing the secret Cartier signature, and a case and Cal. 122 movement, 18 jewels, signed European Watch & Clock Co.

1960sDocumented by Antiquorum

How to tell it apart

What separates the Tank Chinoise (1922) from its neighbors, and what to check before you buy or sell one.

What is a Cartier Tank Chinoise (1922) worth?

Archiva has found two public sales of the Tank Chinoise (1922) in the last three years: $22,400 at Antiquorum Geneva in May 2026 and $88,150 at Finarte in June 2024. Two sales are a rough guide, not a market price.

What is the original Tank Chinoise?

The Tank Chinoise as Cartier made it before the numbered revivals: a square Tank with a raised bar across each end of the case, in 18k yellow gold, hand-wound and without a reference number. Christie's, Sotheby's and Monaco Legend give 1922 for the launch. Dated examples run from about 1923 to the 1970s, and most are about 23 mm wide.

How is the Tank Chinoise different from the classic rectangular Tank?

Its case is square rather than rectangular, and raised bars at both ends overlap the sides, which Christie's describes as an alteration from the classical Tank. Monaco Legend writes that the design took its inspiration from the portals of Chinese temples.

How is it different from the Collection Privée Tank Chinoise?

The Collection Privée Cartier Paris revived the design as numbered references, the platinum 2685G and pink gold 2684 numbers: about 29 to 30.5 × 37 mm, hand-wound on the Cal. 437 MC, with a guilloché dial and a sapphire display back. Dated examples run from 2004 to 2009, outside this archive's scope. The original has no reference number and is smaller, most examples about 23 mm wide.

What should the case back of an original Tank Chinoise show?

Cartier case numbers rather than a reference number, sometimes two on one case, such as 11999 and 22017 on an example of about 1923. Antiquorum records Cartier Paris examples numbered 033642, 033646 and 034890 and dates them from the 1950s to the 1970s, and Sotheby's dates one numbered 031781 to about 1975. Christie's describes early backs secured by four screws in the band.

What movement is in an original Tank Chinoise?

A hand-wound movement that varies by example: signed European Watch & Clock Co. on examples of the 1920s to 1940s, LeCoultre on one of about 1950, and Cartier on Paris examples of the 1960s and 1970s, which Antiquorum catalogs at 7 3/4 or 9 lignes with 17 or 18 jewels. Sotheby's gives a cal. 838/1 for one of about 1975.
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