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The Tank à Vis draws inspiration from one of the most elusive watches ever made by Cartier: the Tank Étanche. A company with a history as rich as Cartier’s is bound to be the subject of some myth making and exaggeration as well. One of the more fascinating stories—one we have told previously —is about the Pasha of Marrakech, who commissioned Cartier to build a waterproof watch in the 1930s to be taken along during his daily swims. Supposedly, Cartier created an oversized round watch for him, a model that would be reintroduced in the 1980s as the flashy Pasha de Cartier. It is unlikely that this is accurate, as the tastes of the time were much more in line with classic rectangular watches like the Tank. It is much more likely that the Pasha ordered a Tank Étanche, a unique waterproof version of the classic Tank for this purpose.  The Tank Étanche is one of the rarest models ever made by Cartier. Only one has come up for auction in recent years, when Phillips sold a Tank Étanche in 2019 that was purchased in the 1930s by the American socialite Barbara Hutton.  The Tank Étanche subsequently served as inspiration for the Tank à Vis that was introduced as part of the exclusive and limited 'Collection Priveé Cartier Paris' (CPCP). This ref. 2485D from the early 2000s features a rectangular platinum case, measuring 27 x 31 mm (39 mm lug to lug). Just like the Tank Étache that inspired it, the Tank à Vis sports an H-shaped bezel with screws in each corner. The real star of the show is the exquisite handmade dial. As with all of the CPCP watches, the dial is made of 18k gold, covered with a layer that contains fine guilloché engraving and a rose motif in the centre. The dial, of course, features Cartier’s painted black Roman numerals and closed minute track and elegant blued sword hands. The latter match well with the iconic sapphire-tipped platinum crown. The 2485D is powered by an ultra-thin manual winding movement that was produced especially for the CPCP collection by Piaget. The watch was just serviced by Cartier and comes with the corresponding service papers, as well as a black alligator-leather Cartier strap with a platinum Cartier deployant clasp.