Home / The Tank style
The Tank style
In the 1940s and early 1950s, at the height of the Art Deco period, iconic jewelry pieces were created, such as “Tank” style rings and bracelets. These bold creations, with their voluminous, three-dimensional geometric shapes, evoked draped, pleated or stylized leaf motifs.
These jewels take their name from the battle tanks that captured the collective imagination during the world wars. The inspiration of tanks was not new: as early as 1919, Cartier had designed the famous “Tank” watch, which has become a timeless icon of watchmaking.
However, the constraints of the time had a profound influence on jewelry design. Platinum, reserved for the war effort, was scarce, forcing jewelers to use mainly yellow and rose gold. The shortage of precious stones also led them to incorporate synthetic sapphires and rubies into their creations.
Despite these challenges, this troubled period gave rise to treasures of creativity, where ingenuity and aesthetics combined to make a lasting mark on the history of jewelry.