Visual Description
The Ref. 2442 is the small time-only Tank Louis in 18k yellow gold, 22 × 29.5 mm. The dial carries painted black Roman numerals, a railroad minute track and the hidden Cartier signature in the X at 10 o'clock, where the larger 2441 has it in the VII. Blued steel sword hands and a crown set with a sapphire cabochon complete it, and the strap fastens with a gold Cartier tang buckle.
Catalogers' words for the dial differ: Bonhams calls it silvered, Bulang & Sons white and European Watch Co. off-white.
Reference Significance
The 2442 is the small quartz Tank Louis. Its larger companion, the Ref. 2441, is 25.5 × 33.7 mm and adds a date at 3 o'clock, on the quartz Cal. 688. The 23 × 30 mm Ref. 8810 is the solid gold quartz Tank Louis of the 1980s and 1990s.
Historical Context
Dated examples run from the late 1990s, the date Bulang & Sons reads from the serial of its example, to about 2005. The range is an estimate built on those dated examples.
What to Look For
Read the case back for the reference number, and check the dial for the hidden signature in the X at 10 o'clock and the crown for its sapphire cabochon. European Watch Co. and Bulang & Sons both describe their examples with an 18k gold Cartier tang buckle.
Check the brancards for polishing that has rounded their edges, and ask for a photograph of the movement to confirm the Cal. 057.
