2013/03/20

Vacheron Constantin the Patrimony Contemporaine Pocket Watch

 

Preserving the finest elements of horology down through changing eras: such is the infinitely delicate responsibility of the Vacheron Constantin designers, master-watchmakers, engineers and artisans. Through their creations, their mission is to inspire emotions as enduring as those aroused by the discovery of the first pocket watch made by Jean-Marc Vacheron in 1755.

In the course of its exceptional history, Vacheron Constantin has consistently distinguished itself – as is powerfully confirmed by its historical collections – in the extraordinary production of pocket watches that are exceptional in terms of their complications, their decoration and their shapes.

So much so indeed, that Vacheron Constantin’s contemporary creations, proving worthy heirs to its heritage and its traditions, continue to offer devotees of beautiful watches an expression of contemporary elegance conveyed through a resolutely classical style.

Formerly a symbol of prestige and freedom
Pocket watches were initially created to facilitate the everyday lives of their owners who no longer needed to listen to the church bell or check the clock in their home or office in order to know the time. For the first time, symbolising prestige as well as freedom, a watch followed its owner everywhere and became a source of inspiration for horologists. The latter accordingly applied their expertise to making increasingly smaller calibres designed to facilitate use of these timekeeping instruments.

Likewise, although formerly considered somewhat fragile, pocket watches in fact merely reflected the state of industrial progress of their times. There are modern ways of making them as water-resistant, accurate and user-friendly as wristwatches.

Now a fine token of contemporary dandyism
Vacheron Constantin revisits its past and the golden age of the pocket-watch by presenting a model with a pure, classic and timeless design, bearing the prestigious Poinçon de Genève (Hallmark of Geneva).

Making no concessions to the current vintage craze, this pocket watch sets the tone of authentic contemporary dandyism. This distinctive attitude is admirably embodied in the refined gesture of taking out of one’s pocket a supremely understated and sensually curved model, equipped with the Manufacture-made hand-wound 4440 movement – and housed inside a brown leather pouch sliding along a leather cord strap or fitted on an original chain with pink gold links. 21st century elegance is no longer just about showing one’s hand, but also about choosing (or not) to reveal hidden depths.

Enshrining a new form of modernity, the pocket watch is propelled to the ranks of a beautiful, iconic object. Attached to a pocket, worn on a chain or placed on a desk like a table clock… It is all about a wish to look at time differently rather than simply wearing it on the wrist.

Harmonious shapes. Exterior and Interior. Enduring equilibrium.
With its voluptuously curved yet elegantly slender case in 18K 5N pink gold; its broad, pure opaline silver-toned dial; its pink gold baton-shaped hands and its restrained, delicately applied hour-markers, creative harmony effectively contributes to achieving aesthetic harmony.

Developed and crafted according to the most demanding Geneva Fine Watchmaking criteria, the mechanical hand-wound Calibre 4400 is entirely conceived, developed and produced by Vacheron Constantin. Its generous 28.60 mm diameter, magnified by the transparency of the sapphire crystal caseback, is perfectly adjusted to the equally generously sized 43 mm case. Thanks to its imposing barrel, this calibre driving the hour and minutes hands has a power reserve of approximately 65 hours, equivalent to three days.

The Patrimony Contemporary Pocket watch meets the new Poinçon de Genève (Hallmark of Geneva) criteria. Instated by the Grand Council of the Republic and Canton of Geneva in 1886, the Hallmark is a guarantee of origin, of craftsmanship, of durability and of know-how. This quality label of independent origin, which has no equivalent anywhere in the world, underwent a fundamental transformation in 2011: the certification no longer applies to the calibre alone, but now to the timepiece as a whole. This is a major evolution for this authentication that has enjoyed longstanding support from Vacheron Constantin, which has decided to respond more fully than ever to the true expectations of an ever more knowledgeable clientele.