Fresh from the Showcase here at SwissWatchExpo.
We are talking to this a great day about a fabulous dress watch.
This is one of my favorite all time watches.
If you know anything about the history of Vacheron Constantin, you'll know that it was
founded in 1755.
It's the oldest Swiss brand that's been in continuous production, but it's a really interesting
history.
The founder was Jean Marc Vacheron and he was friends with people like Jacques Rousseau,
the philosopher, and Voltaire.
They shared a common interest in philosophy science watchmaking.
It really was an interesting sort of who's who of the people that were really at the
cutting edge of philosophy and science at the time.
And then amidst this environment here, he founds one of the greatest watch companies
that's ever come along.
So I love this watch.
I love the philosophy of it.
When you look at the kinds of people that he was friends with, the writings that he
left behind, it's really interesting history.
And as you wear this watch, you can think of yourself as being kind of the philosopher
watchmaker scientist of the Renaissance man, wearing this great watch.
So the company, when they launched the Patrimony series in 2004, the idea behind the watches
was that it would be a little bit of a revival of the spirit and flair of the elegance of
the 1950s dress watches.
So when you think of a dress watch and you think of a beautiful watch in 18 karat gold,
or in platinum, usually round, but often rectangular or square on a leather strap, it's true that
the sport watches have taken the world by storm.
And that dress watches for a while seemed like they were being relegated to the drawer
and people weren't wearing them as much.
What we've found is really that everybody needs a dress watch in your collection.
The fact is you can't just wear a Submariner to every single occasion in your life.
And a dress watch really can be worn as an everyday watch.
It can be just as comfortable at a black tie affair as it can with jeans and a t-shirt
really looks great if it's worn with a casual attire, the rest of your, your outfit, and
then with really nice, extremely elegant dress watch.
So this one is a reference one 11OU, and this is part of a collection that came out in 2016.
And what's interesting about this collection is that it's a substantial size at 42 millimeter.
It would never be confused that this could be a handed down watch from the 1950s.
They just didn't make them in the size, but it certainly has that spirit of elegance and
charm that exuded in the 1950s watches.
When you look at the side of this watch, you can see it's not very thick.
It's 7.65 millimeters thick, and the crystal is domed.
It's a beautiful design, the way the legs come down and the shape of the crystal for
such a large watch at 42 millimeter, because it's not very thick.
It wears more like maybe a 41, but the dial itself has also a bit a concave.
It actually droops down at the edges.
It gives it a really interesting look and the hands mimic that same flow, the hands
kind of follow that curve around and they're curved themselves.
Now, this one it's called the collection excellence platoon, and they really went all out on that.
The dial itself has platinum as noted.
There's a little a signature between four and five that says Pt950.
That's not just talking about the watch.
That's talking about the dial itself has also platinum.
The hands on the markers are 18 karat white gold, the running seconds hand at six is blued
steel, but the dial has almost a depth to it, sort of a metal flake sort of look to
it that when you move it in the light, you can see that it has a sparkle, all its own
that is very subtle, but really beautiful and elegant.
The Vacheron Constantin Maltese cross of course, is on the crown.
And then it does have the Sapphire exhibition case back so that you can see the movement.
Both the case and the movement have the Geneva seal.
And you can look into that.
It originally started around 1801 was when the Geneva seal was invented.
And there are a lot of specific attributes that have to be met for the watch to receive
a Geneva seal.
It was updated not too long ago.
I think 2012.
And Vacheron was one of the companies that really was at the forefront of developing
what the new standard for the Geneva seal would be.
And I think they're the only company that 75% of their output receives the Geneva seal.
So it's a hallmark that actually means something there's so many specific things behind it
as to the way the movement is finished.
The amount of handwork, the way the plates are decorated, the way the corners are tapered
and chamfered, and it's just beautiful.
But when you see this movement, um, it was, it's a fully in-house developed and designed
manufactured a movement from Vacheron.
A lot of, even the Holy Trinity of watchmaking, Patek Phillipe, Audemars Piguet, and Vacheron
Constantin.
A lot of their movements have been based on other companies' movements.
We've talked about some of the Patek movements that are based on a Lemania or a Jaeger Lecoultre
movement.
This one's completely in-house, it's the caliber 400.
And it was designed.
This is one of the things that I love about Vacheron.
It was designed for it to be a watch that could be easily maintained and last multiple
lifetimes.
I have some watches from the, that essentially can't be worked on anymore.
Someone would have to make parts.
That's not what Vacheron envisions happening with this.
Watch a lot of other companies out there, their dress watches even it'll take someone
with a very specialized knowledge and specialized tools to be able to perform a routine maintenance
service on it.
Not.
So with the caliber 4400 represented here, Vacheron has intentionally made it where it'll
last a long time between services.
They put 21 jewels in it, putting jewels in even where, places that they aren't traditionally
included so that it will make the movement have as little friction as possible, make
each service last, as long as possible, make it run reliably.
It has a power reserve of almost three days at some hand wound on the mechanical watch,
of course, but the fact that with a single barrel, it's got a power reserve of almost
three days shows you that it's really running with a very little amount of friction within
the movement, but it's also, as I said, it was designed so that watchmakers who have
knowledge of other watches will be able to maintain this watch going forward in the future.
It's not a watch that necessarily will involve a trip back to Switzerland for it to have
its routine maintenance services will be something that you can have serviced by a good watchmaker
locally.
Oh I think that those attributes make it one of the most interesting and exciting watches
out there today.
I think that the size of it makes it a modern watch, but it does have a vintage flair to
it.
The fact that it reaches back to the look of the elegance of the 1950s watches, the
minute track.
I don't know if you'll be able to see it in the video, but it's called pearled.
It's not like a printed railroad track.
It has, um, small circularmarkers that are applied to the surface of the dial.
The 18 carrot markers are also applied to the surface.
It has the dark markers at 12 three, six and nine, and then buttons.
The other places, the Vacheron logo is printed, but the Maltese cross is applied though.
It's just the perfect minimalist design.
It's a look that has kind of a quiet elegance.
It's definitely a watch that you wear more for the enjoyment of yourself than the other
people that might be around you and see it.
I've never seen one of these.
We call it in the wild, if you just out and about and happened to see one.
When I go to a Braves game, you know, I'll see 10 Submariners.
I've never seen a Patrimony.
But I, it would be really exciting to me if I saw this on someone's wrist.
And it would be kind of a moment of, you know, I know what that is.
And, and, and, and I applaud you, sir, and tip my hat.
So perhaps this is the one for you.
They only made 150 of this watch this one's number 10 that we have here at Swiss watch
expo.
I don't think it'll last long here in our inventory, but click on the link.
See if we've still got it.
Give us a call.
We'll be happy to point you through the other Vacheron Patrimony watches.
We have, it's one of our absolute favorite series that's ever been made cause it is really
one of the most elegant watches.
And it's a great value.
When you look at the world today of the Holy Trinity of watchmaking, and you look at the
values on the resale market, the Vacheron is really are one of the best values out there
for fine watchmaking without going overboard on the cost.
So give us a call.
Let's see if we've got it, and then we can ship it right out to you from SwissWatchExpo.