Let’s start with the name. “Guichets” means “windows” in French. Instead of traditional hands, the watch displays the time through two small apertures cut into a brushed rose gold dial – jumping hours at 12 o’clock, running minutes at six. The effect is stark, geometric, and architectural. The time appears instantly – no dragging hands here. The hours jump precisely on the minute, thanks to the cleverly engineered calibre 9752 MC inside. This movement, based on a Piaget ébauche, had to be finely tuned to handle the instantaneous jump.
That paradox – simplicity hiding complexity – is what defines the Tank à Guichets. When Cartier debuted the original in 1928, the digital time display was cutting-edge. It arrived just a decade after the launch of the Tank Normale and felt like a radical departure. It was modern, sleek, and – with its solid metal dial and aperture display — slightly mysterious.
Nearly 70 years later, Cartier resurrected the Tank à Guichets for its 150th anniversary, releasing a 150-piece run in platinum in 1997. But in 2005, the CPCP series gave it an even rarer treatment: a limited edition of just 100 in rose gold. The crown was moved to 3 o’clock (a deviation from the original 12 o’clock placement), the case proportions were slightly enlarged, and the finish took on a warm, satiny glow.
