Mappin & Webb Tank 'Cintrée'

A quarter-millennium ago, a British entrepreneur named Jonathan Mappin established a humble silver workshop in Sheffield, England. Today, having supplied gems to British royalty and wristwatches to His Majesty's soldiers, Mappin & Webb is among the most revered jewelers in the world.  After its Campaign Watch was issued to British troops during the Boer War and First World War, Mappin & Webb turned its sights on producing newly fashionable men's wristwatches for the growing civilian market. This 'Cintrée-'like dress watch is emblematic of the style that was popular from the 1920s through the 1940s — and is becoming ever more fashionable today. Housed in an elongated, rectangular 9K gold case with an unsigned crown, a smooth bezel, and thin wire lugs, it features a handsome silvered dial with a 'railroad' minute track in black, exploded 'Arabic' numerals, and a blued steel 'spade' handset. Signed 'Mappin' and featuring deep hallmarks on its caseback, it's powered by a hand-wound 15-jewel movement with two fine adjustments that fits snugly behind its curved dial. Paired to a black leather strap, this lovely, nearly century-old dress watch from a historic British marker is ready to take pride of place in a modern collection. Strap it on for special occasions and be reminded that English watchmaking helped usher in our own golden age of horological excellence!