Knowledge Center

Professional Authentication Platform

Log InRegister

Dial

Railway minute track and Roman numerals

Probable

The chemin de fer minute track and the particular Roman numerals that Cartier has used across the Tank and Santos lines for a century. Both are printing, and printing is where counterfeit dials fail most reliably: the numerals have a specific weight and serif treatment, the track's rungs are evenly spaced and terminate cleanly, and the whole is registered square to the case.

Part reference

Brand
Cartier
Identifying marks
Under magnification the printing sits IN the lacquer with sharp edges and no bleed. Minute-track rungs are even in length and spacing all the way round, including where they pass behind the numerals. The IIII is used rather than IV, following long-standing dial convention.

Documented on these references

Provenance of this record

Sources & Evidence

Contemporaneous sourceOriginal catalog

Cartier catalogues, price lists and period advertising

Cartier

Accessed
2026-08-18

Cited for

This referenceProbable
Secondary sourceAuction archive

Auction-house scholarship on vintage Cartier

Major auction houses and their watch departments

Accessed
2026-08-18

Cited for

This referenceProbable

Last verified: Not yet reviewed