Watch Paparazzi

Writer Anna Wintour spotted wearing Cartier

Anna Wintour attended the Australian Open wearing a watch that, like its owner, needs no introduction. Photographed courtside at Melbourne Park, the Vogue America editor-in-chief had a yellow gold Cartier Tank on her wrist — an accessory she has been associated with for decades, reinforcing her reputation as a woman whose style vocabulary is edited down to its most essential elements.

The piece in question appears to be a Tank Louis Cartier in large size, distinguishable by its clean silvered dial with Roman numerals, blued-steel sword hands, chemin-de-fer railroad track minute rail, and that characteristic gold case with gently rounded lugs. The cabochon sapphire crown — a Cartier signature since the 1970s — is just visible at the side. The white lizard-grain strap is consistent with Cartier's own-brand straps used on the Tank Louis reference WGTA0011 or the earlier vintage references, though the case proportions and dial aging suggest this may be an older piece, possibly from the 1980s or early 1990s production run.

The Tank's historical credentials are unimpeachable. Louis Cartier debuted the concept in 1917, gifting the first examples to General John Pershing and his officers. It entered commercial production in 1919 and never really left. The Tank Louis Cartier, introduced in 1977 as a refinement of the original, remains the purest distillation of the form — manually wound, powered by the Cartier Calibre 430 MC (in modern iterations), with a 27-hour power reserve and a case measuring approximately 25.5 × 33.7 mm in its large configuration.

For collectors, a vintage yellow gold Tank Louis in strong condition with original dial represents serious horological currency. The design's cultural penetration — worn by Jackie Kennedy, Andy Warhol, Princess Diana — gives it a provenance that transcends the watch category entirely. Wintour's choice is neither coincidental nor casual; it is, like all her choices, a considered statement.

On the current market, modern yellow gold Tank Louis Cartier references trade at retail around $8,800 USD for the quartz version, while vintage examples in yellow gold with original dials and matching straps can command $4,000–$12,000 depending on provenance, condition, and generation. A well-preserved 1980s example would sit comfortably in the upper half of that range.