Vacheron Constantin

Vacheron Constantin watches tops the list in luxury watches. What is amazing with this watch company is the fact than in its more than 250 year of existence, the company’s history thrived on uninterrupted surviving Revolutions, World Wars, economic crises, and change of owners and administrators.

Vacheron Constantin is the oldest watch watchmaker in the world. It was founded in 1755 by a young and talented cabinotier, Jean-Marc Vacheron.  Besides having a good head for business, Vacheron was also a fine watch craftsman. His dedication to the art and precision of watchmaking may well be the precedent of other Swiss watch companies that were founded more than a century later.

Vacheron’s first complication was made in 1770 in his shop in Saint Gervais, Geneva. It was here where Vacheron forged the brand that became one of the greatest names in the watch industry. The brand was worn by Napoleon Bonaparte and there is speculation that Bonaparte could have been wearing a Vacheron during the Battle of Waterloo which really fires up the imagination.

The company was turned over to Vacheron’s son and later to his grandson. In 1819 the heirs of Vacheron hired an outsider, Francois Constantin. He single-handedly marketed Vacheron et Constantin watches all over Europe and North America.  When Georges-Auguste Leschot joined the company in 1839, he fantastically standardized the movements into calibers.  Vacheron et Constantin became industry pioneers and led the watch industry as awards and recognitions were afforded to the company.

Upon the death of Vacheron’s direct heirs and that of Constatin, the company fell into the hands of various heirs. However, the company never missed a beat as it continued to innovate in watch technology.  In 1877 the official name of the watch company was Vacheron & Constantin, Fabricants, Geneve and its logo was and still is the Maltese cross.

For its bicentennial celebration, the company produced the thinnest movement at 1. 62 mm.  To mark the beginning of its third century of watchmaking, Vacheron Constantin (since 1970) produced the thinnest watch at 5.25 mm called the Patrimony. This was when the company was under the administration of George Ketter.  Jacques Ketter took over the company and it was during his time the most expensive watch of that era was made. The Kallista was valued at £3.3 million. It was made directly into a gold ingot and then peppered with 130 carat emerald cut diamonds.  Today, this watch is valued at £7 million.

In 2005, as tribute to the company’s 250^th anniversary, the “Tour de I’lle” was launched. It was one of the world’s most complicated watches with its 16 horological complications and 834 parts; priced at $1 million.

Currently Vacheron Constantin has seven major collections namely: Patrimony; Malte; Quai de L’ile, Overseas; Ladies Timepieces; Historiques and Métiers D Art.

Patrimony is Vacheron Constantin’s classics.   The designs are simple yet elegant and contemporary.  A fine sample is the Classique, a 35 mm yellow gold watch with croco strap pegged at £7,000.

The Malte collection is one of major collections.  The designs are contemporary and use the latest innovations in watch technology.  The Malte Tonneau Tourbillon in platinum is set at £150,000. Iconic Watches is proud to have a Malte tourbillon instock.

The Quai de L’ile collection makes use of cutting edge watch technologies in perfect combination with traditional watchmaking. This line of watch can be personalized according to a customer’s preference.

The Overseas collection is Vacheron Constantin’s answer to contemporary sports watches.  Its Chronographe yellow gold, 42 mm automatic is priced at £30,000.

The Ladies Timepieces collection showcases bold, daring lady’s watches.  The Egérie white gold at 27.50 mm is dearly priced at £60,000.

Historiques is a collection of revivals of legendary timepieces of Vacheron Constantin watches. The Toledo 1952 is automatic is at £20,000.

Métiers D Art is a collection of artful and haute jewelry watches that only Vacheron Constantin can offer.  The Kalla Duchesse in white gold, 45 mm, and hand wound mechanism is priced at £750,000.

Check ourVacheron Constantin collection here and remember Iconic Watches can source anything.

By Love Blomquist

I always felt that Vacheron Constantin deserved to stand in the limelight that its more notorious rival Patek always has. After all, there’s not that much difference between the identities of the two brands: high end conservative stylings with a sport model or two (the Nautilus and the Overseas respectively). Patek just happens to be considered the end-all be-all in the luxury watch world, while VC vies for attention from prospective buyers of brands like A. Lange & Söhne, Breguet and so on. While certainly not a poor market segment to be in, I hope the Richemont-owned company further elevates to the timeless status that Vacheron Constantin deserves.

Notably, another characteristic that sets VC apart from Patek is its willingness to produce timepieces that are a little more, shall we say, out there. Whether or not this is beneficial with regard to the brand’s identity (wicked tongues will tell you that Rolex’s success is mainly due to more or less staying the same for decades) is hard to tell, and time will probably do such. As it stands today, the only thing you really can do is judge the more eccentric offerings by themselves.

Luckily, they are a feast for the eye. A prime example is the Malte Tourbillon that turned up on JamesList just last week. Sporting a hand-wound 1790R caliber, this rose gold tonneau beauty features a tourbillon bearing the Maltese cross, the symbol of Vacheron Constantin. Its diameter is only 36mm but obviously wears a lot larger because of the art deco shape. The in-house movement has a power reserve of 45 hours

http://blog.jameslist.com/2010/james-pick-vacheron-constantin-malte-tourbillon/

Here is the watch on Iconic Watches for a closer look …

www.iconicwatches.co.uk