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Wristwatches · Wristwatch

Movado Tank Ultraplan with Black Gilt Dial

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Movado (maker)
Date
c. 1940s
Country of origin
Switzerland
Object type
Wristwatch
Dimensions
Case 38 mm
Stock no.
Product 10087203111188
Credit line
Dealer listing, Collectors Corner NY (product 10087203111188)
Catalogue title (original)
Movado Tank Ultraplan w/Black Gilt Dial - Near Mint (1940s) (English)

View the source record (dealer listing) ↗ (opens another website in a new tab)Suggest a correction

Record summary

Catalogued by Collectors Corner NY (dealer), New York (stock number Product 10087203111188), this is a wristwatch by Movado, made in Switzerland, dated c. 1940s. The Atlas places it in the Golden Age of Mechanical Watchmaking period (1900 – 1945) of its Wristwatches collection. Recorded dimensions: Case 38 mm. The record is illustrated with 6 photographs.

Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.

Catalogue description

Dealer description — Collectors Corner NY

On offer is a very rare Art Deco style Movado Ultraplan Tank, circa 1940s. It houses a glossy black dial with large radium Arabic numerals and sub-seconds at 6 o'clock. The dial is signed both "Fab. Suisse" and "Swiss Made." At 24 X 38mm the curved case is suitable for medium to larger sized wrists. What makes this example so striking is its preservation level being an 80+ year old timepiece. Remaining in absolutely incredible vintage condition, the dial has a mirror-like gloss, displaying beautifully aged indices and matching hands. The case is equally stunning, appearing unpolished and very seldom worn with only the lightest signs of use. For any collector of vintage Movado watches looking for something truly special, this piece is a unique opportunity to add a true time capsule to your stable.

Historical context

Golden Age of Mechanical Watchmaking (1900 – 1945)

The wristwatch displaces the pocket watch; waterproof cases, self-winding and grand complications.

The wristwatch overtook the pocket watch. Military use in the First World War, aviation, water-resistant cases (1926), automatic winding (1923–31), rectangular Art Deco designs and early chronographs and calendars defined the period.

Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Industrial Revolution

Atlas type guide

Wristwatches

Bracelet watches were worn by women from the early nineteenth century — Breguet made one for Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples, in 1810–12 — but the wristwatch only became a man's instrument with military use and aviation in the early twentieth century. Between the World Wars it overtook the pocket watch; the 1920s and 1930s brought rectangular Art Deco cases, water-resistant cases and the first automatic winding systems.

After 1945 the wristwatch became a carrier of identity — dress watches, sports and dive watches, chronographs, calendars — produced by Swiss, American, Japanese, German, Soviet and Chinese industries. The quartz revolution after 1969 and the mechanical renaissance since the 1990s, including the rise of independent watchmakers, complete the story.

What to look for

  • The reference number (between the lugs or inside the case back) and serial number, the starting point for dating.
  • The calibre: its maker and number are often stamped under the dial or on the bridge.
  • Originality of dial, hands and crown — refinished ('redial') dials are common.
  • Case material marks: 18K/750, 14K/585, stainless steel, gold-filled, plated.

Dating clues

  • Wire-lug cases: before c. 1925.
  • Water-resistant screw-down cases: from 1926.
  • Quartz movements: from 1969; sapphire crystals widespread after c. 1980.

General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.

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