I hope you don't mind if I insert this brief review of the 6394 from years ago?
It should be of no great surprise to my fellow Loungers that I believe Vacheron & Constantin’s wristwatches of the 1950’s and 60’s as among the finest timepieces ever created. Within that era, I can further refine this favoritism to those housing the Geneva Seal ruby-roller marvels; the caliber 1070 family of automatic movements. So when the chance arose to add a distinguished example to my display cabinet, I had to take it. Never mind that it was only a few weeks before the annual Christmas orgy of gift-giving and resulted in much eye-rolling by family members…I would live with the shame.
You see, this newly acquired watch filled many tick-boxes on my wish list of things V&C in terms of movement, metal and model. It housed the time-only caliber K1071 and thus its matt silver dial, minus the date aperture, presented a particularly clean face. The impression of being larger than its actual 36mm diameter was indeed surprising.
The case itself was crafted in warm pink gold, resulting from an infusion of silver in the alloy. Complimenting the case were pink gold baton hands, indexes, and original crown. The screw-on case back signified a water-resistant model. Offsetting the vintage impression were very contemporary curved and stepped lugs.
The most distinctive feature of this reference was a very delicate band of linen-textured guilloche work applied to the bezel. So ethereal, only the most diligently cared-for examples survived as new. Restorations to the guilloche of the one-piece stepped upper body were highly problematic, with a smooth or satin polish often being the only alternative for marred bezels. Those that have surmised by now I’m referring to a Reference 6394 would be absolutely correct.
Although instantly recognizable to the cognoscenti, the 6394 hasn’t been favored with a nickname like its cousins the 6694 “Batman” or 6378 “Ecossaise” (“Scottish”, for its tartan-inspired bezel decoration). Horological auction records reveal manufacture dates ranging from 1958 to 1967, fitted with 1071, 1072 (date) or 1072/1 (date and Gyromax) rotor-winding movements. Yellow, pink and white gold, as well as platinum cases were offered. Dial iconography followed V&C’s usual creative inclinations. Upon soleil or satine backgrounds were affixed the full range of index and hand styles from the period. Vertical markers were very distinctive while diamond markers were most unusual.
Incidentally, this wasn’t my first 6394. Several years ago I purchased a yellow-gold example from an online auction site, only to discover that clever photography had hidden many flaws. The merchant proved to be as suspect as his wares and refused to accept its return. I eventually sold the piece at a loss. While this experience made me a more vigilant shopper, it also left an unsatisfied itch.
Previous owners were obviously careful. The overall excellence of the watch, accompanied by a malte buckle in pink gold on a well-matched brown alligator strap, suggested a life admired but not worn. Service markings scratched onto the inner case back confirmed a watchmaker’s attention on several occasions. A further, and not insignificant, bonus was the inclusion of a slinky pink gold Milanese-style bracelet. While twice hallmarked, the markings did not conform to Swiss laws of the period, suggesting the bracelet may have been acquired in another market. I look forward to further investigations of this aspect.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this brief introduction to the Reference 6394 and welcome your nominations for a friendlier, non-numerical, appellation to bestow upon this noble model; perhaps “Lunette Linge”?
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