Reaffirming its reputation for exquisite craftsmanship and exceptional innovation, Vacheron Constantin launches its new limited edition trio of Traditionnelle timepieces.
Since 1755, the Vacheron Constantin brand has been synonymous with watchmaking excellence. Now, in celebration of a staggering 270 years of continuous creativity, the Maison has revealed a trio of limited edition Traditionnelle watches celebrating two iconic historical signatures – open-worked dials and retrograde displays – in a bold reinterpretation of their rich heritage in a highly contemporary style.
“We have taken the open-worked approach in new directions with these limited editions,” the Maison’s Style & Heritage Director Christian Selmoni tells Canvas. “Today, with these 270th anniversary timepieces, we wanted to magnify the architectural strength of our movements and reveal their inner beauty by highlighting our expertise in finishing.”
Vacheron Constantin’s first watch with an open-worked dial was originally produced in 1918, a pocket watch that also featured an innovative in-built astronomical calendar. The Maison would later return to this type of dial in 2002 with their Reference 47247, boasting a fascinatingly complex retrograde date mechanism. In 2019, this same spirit was reembodied in the Traditionnelle Twin Beat perpetual calendar, displaying the skilful juxtaposition of contemporary style and traditional sophistication through its open-worked dial and the mesmerising internal mechanics of the calibre. The open-faced approach resurfaced again in 2021 in the Traditionnelle Openface Complete Calendar, followed by the Traditionnelle Tourbillon in 2023.
Vacheron Constantin introduced its first wristwatch featuring a retrograde date display in 1940, with the ‘Don Pancho’ Reference 3620. This piece vanished for almost 60 years, before reappearing at auction in 2019; a significant moment for the Maison, which had previously reintroduced this type of display in 1994 with its Mercator watch, featuring a double retrograde display with trailing hours and minutes. Then, in the early 2000s, and marking the 245th anniversary of the Maison, Vacheron Constantin released the Reference 47245, fitted with a retrograde date display of exemplary legibility and exacting technical prowess.
Each of the new limited edition Traditionnelle models feature open-worked dials with an incredibly detailed signature pattern inspired by the outline of the Maltese cross, which has served as Vacheron Constantin’s emblem since 1880. The finely hand-guilloché decoration echoes the dial of the Reference 6068 – first launched in 1955 to mark the bicentenary of the Maison – within the subtle interplay of light and shadow that accentuates every movement of the wearer’s wrist.
Every component within the calibre is finished by hand, exemplifying the dedication and skill of the Maison’s crafters through the carefully executed combination of controlled machining and manual gestures that result in a harmonious, continuous line from one bridge to the next, across the entire movement. More than 500 hours of practice are necessary to attain mastery of this rarified technique, clearly reflecting Vacheron Constantin’s devotion to the preservation of its renowned savoir-faire across successive generations.
For the Traditionnelle Perpetual Calendar Retrograde Date Openface model, Vacheron Constantin’s skilled artisans have designed a completely new, self-winding, 5.45mm-thick Calibre 2460 QPR31/270, equipped with not one but two complications. The first is a perpetual calendar showing days, months and a leap-year cycle, completed by lunar phases in an aperture at the six o’clock position, while the second takes the form of a retrograde date display, located on the uppermost part of the dial. The airy appearance of the calibre is then enhanced further by sapphire discs with day, month and leap-year markings, set against a deep blue background to ensure legibility.
Meanwhile, the Traditionnelle Tourbillon Retrograde Date Openface derives its power from a self-winding Calibre 2162 R31/270, a 242-component manufacture movement with a 72-hour power reserve that operates at a rate of 18,000 vibrations per hour, despite measuring just 6.35mm thick. It also incorporates a tourbillon at the six o’clock position with a retrograde date display, the delicate workings of which can be observed through the upper part of the open-worked dial.
Finally, the Traditionnelle Complete Calendar Openface opts for a manufacture Calibre 2460 QCL/270; a more contemporary iteration of the Calibre 2450, itself the first self-winding version of the complete calendar to be designed and developed completely in-house by Vacheron Constantin. The open-worked dial reveals just part of the 312-component self-winding mechanism. The date is displayed around the periphery of the dial using a blued hand, while the day and month are marked on sapphire discs, contrasting with the blue background of the apertures.
Vacheron Constantin’s new limited-edition Traditionnelle models demonstrate clearly the Maison’s ongoing quest for both mechanical excellence and aesthetic beauty, while also elevating it to new levels. Blending both heritage and innovation, the technical mastery and bold aesthetics of these pieces are unmistakable.
