Vacheron Constantin

Due to circumstances, I was not able to take photos of all the new watches from Vacheron Constantin for 2007. But fortunately the watch I managed to photograph are undoubtedly the best offerings for the year (for the other watches unveiled by VC at SIHH 2007, please see the coverage posted on the Vacheron Constantin forum).

The highlight of the VC's 2007 collection is definitely the Patrimony Traditionnelle Caliber 2755, a minute repeater with perpetual calendar and tourbillon. It is the most complicated VC in production and contains 602 parts housed inside a 44mm rose gold case.

The finish on the cal. 2755 is superb, as good as anything from any of the big Swiss haute horlogerie houses. But the real treat is the minute repeater - the sound is marvellous. Not only are the chimes clear and audible, but the annoying buzz from the centrifugal force regulator is absent.

From what I gather, VC got around the perennial bane of striking watches by devising a device that prevents the regulator from emitting the buzzing sound by gently clamping on it. If VC can achieve sound that is this good consistently in all its striking watches, it can easily take on Patek Philippe in this category.

Next is the Les Métiers d'Art "Les Masques", a set of 4 wristwatches each decorated by a miniature of an ancient mask. Each mask on the dials of the 4 watches is a replica of an actual mask from the Barbier-Mueller Museum in Geneva, famous for its collection of primitive tribal artifacts. Only 25 sets of the quartet will be produced.

VC utilised advanced computer imaging and design software to shrink the actual masks and fit them under the crystal of the watch. All of the masks are identical copies of the ones on display at the museum, right down to the patina and tarnish. Even the dent on the nose of the Chinese Death Mask is reproduced on the watch.

The masks are set on sapphire dials tinted in complementary colours and engraved with a poem written by Michel Butor, a contemporary French writer. Each mask has an individual poem dedicated to it reflecting the nature of the mask. Because of the tinted crystal, the poems are only visible at certain angles so they do not draw attention away from the mask. To accomplish this, VC had to engrave the underside of each crystal with the words of the poem before filling the engraving with gold.

The movement inside each of the Les Métiers d'Art "Les Masques" is the same cal. 2460 found in the Les Métiers d'Art "4 Saisons" unveiled for the 250th anniversary of VC in 2005. Time, day and date are read from discs positioned at the edge of the dial, freeing up much of the dial for various forms of decoration. I foresee the Les Masques will be the first of many watches with dials decorated with miniature art.

Contrary to the many positive reactions, I do not like the Les Métiers d'Art "Les Masques". I find the masks adorning each dial beautiful; VC did an impressive job of shrinking down the museum masks and the workmanship is amazing. But I just cannot appreciate the masks on the dial of a watch.

That being said, the VC collection for 2007 is a strong one, it demonstrates the capability of the Geneva house and its potential to climb higher. I expect to see a lot more from VC in the coming years.

We have come to the end of the coverage of the 2007 SIHH and Geneva fairs. Circumstances permitting, I will be back next year with coverage of the 2008 Geneva fairs.