Harking back directly to the origins which have guided Vacheron Constantin since its foundation in 1755, the Cabinotiers time-pieces embody the watchmaker’s art at its best and raising the creative talents of Vacheron Constantin to new heights.
Les Cabinotiers is the special section inside the manufacture where Vacheron Constantin’s master watchmakers work on the highest complications. This timepiece exemplifies exceptional technical superiority with a hand-wound movement and caliber 1755 SQ. The openworked case is 37 mm and is made of platinum. The grand complication, the minute repeater, is on-demand strike of hours, quarters, and minutes.
Les Cabinotiers Openworked Minute Repeater is the world’s slimmest-ever openworked minute repeater watch.
The King Fouad I pocket-watch sold for a record SFr 3,306,250, making it the most sought-after pocket-watch in this sale and the 5th most sought-after pocket-watch in the world.
This superb piece was presented as a gift in July 1929 by the colony of Swiss people living in Egypt to mark the visit to Switzerland of King Fouad I. This remarkable 18K gold timepiece features a silver dial graced with 12 complications: a split-seconds chronograph with 30-minute register, a perpetual calendar, displays of the date, day, month, leap-year and moon phase, as well as a minute repeater striking three gongs on demand, grande sonnerie striking the hours and quarters on three gongs, and petite sonnerie striking the quarter hours on three gongs. The striking mechanism possesses its own winding train distinct from that of the 46-jewel movement.
Sidetrack history regarding King Fouad I,
Born in 1920, Egypt’s last monarch, King Farouk I was a notorious glutton, kleptomaniac, skirt chaser and, to top it all off, he was extremely whimsical too. He ascended the throne at the age 18 as a wide-eyed idealist all set to always be good only to discard these ideals as time wore on. Psychologically unhinged, he could shed tears seeing a dead bird during a promenade and the very next moment he could grab a cat and smash it smack against the wall. Becoming king, Farouk immediately issued a decree outlawing red cars in his country. Simply because all of his 100-plus cars were of exactly that color… Soon after he had so much antagonized all of his onetime allies and the army that the revolutionaries did not find it at all difficult to overthrow him…
After the 32-year-old Farouk left the country never to get back again, the new regime quickly moved to auction off the king 's vast collection of trinkets and stolen treasures, including a huge collection of pornographic magazines and the world’s largest collection of post stamps. Searching the royal palaces, they found whole rooms laden with things at various times and places pilfered by the kleptomaniac monarch — empty bottles, coins, watches and untouched toothpaste tubes. And pricier things like, for example, a ceremonial sword Farouk had picked up right from the coffin of the Shah of Iran and a priceless pocket watch stolen from Winston Churchill.
At the age of 18 Farouk fell in love with the 17-year-old beauty Safinez Zulfikar and shortly after married her but not before he made her change her name. From then on Safinez was supposed to go under the official name Farida which in Arabic means “the only one”. It wasn’t long before the young king started having flings with other women though. Farouk was spending much time and effort to make his subjects believe he was an insatiable lover and convince them he certainly did! Always a glutton, the king would devour huge amounts of meat, fish, and eggs and was a real sucker for carbonated soft drinks. His gluttony for fine cuisine soon made the six-foot-tall former king dangerously obese, weighing nearly 300 pounds (136 kilos).
A great fan of night clubs and gambling, Farouk would often sit in casinos entertaining himself by spitting on passing waiters and guests and flirting with women. Those of the latter who ignored his attentions could easily wind up in one of his five palaces without their consent. Farouk was particularly partial to married women often blackmailing them to divorce their husbands. And it seems he just couldn’t care less about the feelings of his wife Farida who bore him three children during their 11 years together only to see her husband divorce her in the end. Shortly after the breakup the king, eager to win back his people’s love and respect, tied the knot with Nariman Sadeq, a 16-year-old commoner who looked so much like the woman he once craved for… After the 1952 coup Nariman followed her husband into exile in Italy but two years later she returned home and obtained a Moslem divorce.
Farouk continued to live a lavish life even in exile, and continued his obsessive accumulation of material goods squandering what had remained of his once vast fortune. In Rome he made the acquaintance of the 18-year-old aspiring actress Irma Minutolo. The two met during a beauty pageant Irma was taking part in. She never won any awards but managed to win the heart of the playboy ex-king who bought her a plush apartment and was paying for her music and singing lesions. Until Farouk’s last day Irma Minutolo remained his lover which did not prevent him looking for and finding ever new bedfellows…
Farouk died in Rome, on March 18, 1965. On the night he died, he was again eating in his favorite restaurant in the company of a new and his last girlfriend. He was only 45…
Métiers d’Art La symbolique des laques Maki-e watch theme: Longevity The pine, bamboo and plum are the “three friends of winter”. The theme of the first set Métiers d’Art La symbolique des laques Maki-e watch is their symbolic meaning. These three kinds of trees were introduced to Japan from China at an early age and received greatly in Japan like in China. As these three kinds of plants can all withstand cold weather, “three friends of winter” stands for longevity, which symbolizes a fair-weather friendship.
Métiers d’Art La symbolique des laques Maki-e Watch: Pine and Crane
Pine is very popular in Japan because of its curved shape and texture. But in art and literature, pine is indeed the traditional plant from China. Pine is evergreen tree, which symbolizes longevity and immortality.
As pine, the crane is symbol of longevity and elegance. It is the most mysterious bird as the Phoenix in east legend. It is said that cranes can live thousands of years. But when it is 600 years old it will only drink cold water for a living. In Taoist mythology, the crane is angel. In addition to its mythical image, Japanese are attracted by its elegant and beautiful feather. In winter, all Japanese are looking forward to the advent of cranes. They even regard crane as a harbinger of wealth.
Métiers d’Art La symbolique des laques Maki-e Watch: Bamboo and Sparrow In Taoism, as well as the Buddhist legend, the tubular structure of bamboo symbolizes “empty”, which stands for tolerance and enlightened ideas. Bamboo has flexible and firm features. It is the symbol of upright and outspoken personality.
Although the life of bamboo is shorter than pine, it also represents longevity. Single shoots can not survive for a long time, but the whole bamboo grove is formed by shoots.
Bamboo grove has great attraction to sparrows. In Japan, sparrow is the symbol of loyalty and responsibility. Bamboo and Sparrow often appear in the drawing of Buddhism, bamboo stands for spiritual awareness and relief of secular, sparrow represents spontaneity and joy of life.
Métiers d’Art La symbolique des laques Maki-e Watch: Plum and Nightingale
Plum is famous for its fine and blossoms in winter. The faint scent distributes in cold winter, reminding the arrival of spring. Although the plum trees and flowers are not spectacular, its refined and elegant characteristics bring a little embellishment of lonely winter. It’s the symbol of inner beauty and humility.
The collocation of Plum Blossom and Nightingale derived from Japanese culture. They are both messengers of spring: the first singing of Nightingale is called hatsune. Plum and Nightingale usually appeared in the art and poetry.
Vacheron Constantin Calibre 1003 Movement Movement: 1003 SQ, hollow 14K gold, plated ruthenium treatment; self-developed by Vacheron Constantin; cast the “Geneva Seal” Power: Manual winding mechanical movement Movement thickness: 1.64 millimeters Movement diameter: 20.80 millimeters Gem: 18 Vibration frequency: 18,000 times per hour Display Function: hours, minutes, Power reserve: approximately 30 hours
Vacheron Constantin’s classic Kallista is the world’s most expensive watch, which was produced in 1886, originally Kingalid ordered it. However, the king passed away before the watch was finished, and it was bought by an unknown buyer from the US at the price of $3.5milion. Kallista is entirely diamond-studded, both on the watch body and the strap, enjoying 118 carefully selected top grade blue and white diamonds weighting 130 karats. Every stone of Kallista has its own GIA (Gemological Institute of America) certificate.The case itself was sculpted from a gold block. The latter weighted over one kilo. Today it is valued at 11 million. And in order to produce this watch, Vacheron Constantin recruited the best engineers and took 20 months (over 6,000hours) of work. And Kallista means perfect in Greek. This is just what Vacheron Constantin wants to show to the world.
The designer of this wonder was Raymond Moretti.
Have you ever wonder which watch manufacturer is the oldest, and how old?
Well heres your answer...
Vacheron Constantin was founded in Geneva, Switzerland in 1755 by Jean-Marc Vacheron. This makes it the oldest watch manufacturer in the world with an uninterrupted history. Besides being a young businessman, Vacheron was also a talented craftsman. In 1770 his company created the first complication, and nine years later he designed the first engine-turned dials.
Vacheron Constantin is also the company that some watch enthusiasts consider to be the creator of one of the most expensive wristwatches, which was entitled Kallista. It was made in 1979 and its initial price was $5 million. Today, however, the watch is valued at about $11 million. Kallista had 118 emerald-cut diamonds. It took about 6,000 hours for the watch masters to make this watch and about 20 months for the best jewelers in the world to enrich the watch.
So up-to-date, the company has already weather 255 Years of watch making.
For 2010, Vacheron Constantin presents the Patrimony Traditionnelle “Calibre 2253” watch in the Collection Excellence Platine. This model features a major astronomical complication in terms of technical application. Entirely constructed by Vacheron Constantin’s engineering department and developed over several thousands of hours, the new Calibre 2253 provides information derived from Earth’s orbit around the sun, notably a perpetual calendar, the equation of time and the times of sunrise and sunset. It has a tourbillon escapement as well.
The fascinating equation of time
The equation of time is probably the most fascinating complication in this outstanding model. Its purpose is to indicate the difference in minutes between the variable solar time shown by a sundial and the constant mean time of clocks and watches. For practical reasons, mankind has divided each year into 365 and a quarter days, each day into 24 hours, and the hours into 60 minutes each. However, because the Earth’s orbit is elliptical rather than circular, the time in relation to the sun varies daily. The noon zenith of the sun when it crosses the observer’s meridian seldom occurs at exactly 12 o’clock by his watch. In fact solar time and mean time coincide just four times a year – on April 15, June 14, September 1 and December 24. For the rest of the year, the difference between solar and mean time varies from minus 16 minutes to plus 16 minutes.
The oldest clock showing the equation of time was made by the mathematician Nikolaus Mercator in the 17th century. It enabled folk to covert the sun’s varying noon to the standard constant time shown on their watches. Since then, the rare instruments calculating the equation of time have been the work of extremely accomplished horologists.
Making this complication work does indeed call for particular skill. It depends on the equation cam, a waisted oval, shaped like a figure 8 and calculated according to the daily declination of the sun observed from a given spot. The cam rotates once a year while a hand following its contour indicates the equation of time at between 10 and 11 o’clock on the dial of the Patrimony Traditionnelle “Calibre 2253” timepiece of the Collection Excellence Platine.
When the sun rises and sinks
This timepiece displays another function seldom found in watches – the times of sunrise and sunset throughout the year at a given locality. This tricky complication also relies on a cam, the outline of which is calculated according to the latitude of the locality. It demonstrates both the skill of the manufacture’s engineers and watchmakers and Vacheron Constantin’s attention to its clients, for they can choose the place of the sunrises and sunsets. To this extent it’s a custom-made complication where the dials are paired at 8 o’clock and 4 o’clock on the face.
The tourbillon carriage, as always in the shape of the brand emblem, a Maltese Cross, rotates once a minute at 6 o’clock as a small seconds indication. The indications of the perpetual calendar are symmetrically laid out with the days, the months and the dates at 9, 12 and 3 o’clock respectively. The leap-year indicator makes a circumspect appearance on the upper right.
An exceptional level of finish
The sophisticated finish of this watch is taken to the limits to match its complexity. As part of the Collection Excellence Platine this Patrimony Traditionnelle “Calibre 2253” unsurprisingly incorporates many elements in platinum, from its 43 mm case, water-resistant at a pressure of 3 bar or 30 meters, to its dial hallmarked “PT950”, its crown and its folding clasp in the shape of a halved Maltese Cross. There is one other most unusual, if not unique, horological feature: even the Dauphine hands that show the hours and minutes are fashioned in the same material – an incredible technical prowess. The decoration of the dial alternates silvered and frosted surfaces, with snailed chapters, circular-brushed subdials and diamond-polished filets. The applied hour markers and Maltese Cross are in white gold.
The Calibre 2253 movement also bears the prestigious Hallmark of Geneva, which is an independent and legally sanctioned label of workmanship, origin, precision, resilience and competence. This seal of watchmaking perfection, among the oldest of professional labels, is reserved for a handful of Geneva manufacturers. It means that such decorative aspects of the movement as Côtes de Genève, circular graining, chamfering and straight graining of the steelwork are entirely done by hand.
The finish of the thin bridge that holds the tourbillon is an example among many. It consists of rounding off the top of the rectangular steel bar with a file to create a gleaming barrel-vault along its upper length. The camber follows the shape of the bridge from its jewelled centre to its winged extremities. The entire operation involves grinding and smoothing the surface with a variety of stones and abrasive pastes and then buffing it to a high polish. To meet Vacheron Constantin’s standards of finish, this job takes around 11 hours and is done entirely by hand, but it does signify a properly finished movement.
Such is the complexity and level of finish of this horological masterpiece, that it comprises no fewer than 457 parts in a movement only 9.60 mm thick. That explains why the production is limited to just 10 pieces.
Movement
2253, developed and crafted by Vacheron Constantin
Stamped with the Hallmark of Geneva
Energy
Mechanical, manual-winding
Movement thickness
9.60 mm
Movement diameter
32.00 mm
Jewels
30 jewels
Frequency
18,000 vibrations/hour
Indications
Hours, minutes, seconds on tourbillon
Perpetual calendar
Equation of time, sunset and sunrise
(Ephemeris to the localization chosen by the client)
Power reserve on the caseback
Power reserve
More than 300 hours (14 days) - 4 main springs, coupled two by two
Number of parts
457 pieces
Case
950 platinum
Diameter: 43 mm
Convex sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on one side
Open-worked screwed-down back
Water-resistance
3 bar, equivalent to 30 metres
Dial
Sand-blasted finish, special “PT950” marking at 4.30
12 hour-markers and Maltese Cross in 18-carat white gold
Strap
Dark blue alligator leather, hand-stitched with platinum thread
Swiss watchmaker Vacheron Constantin marked its 250th anniversary in 2005 with the world’s most complicated wrist watch—the Tour de l’Ile. The watch is so complicated that it required over 10,000 hours of research to create. Its name refers to one of the historical sites of the venerable company, located next to the current Maison Vacheron Constantin on the Quai de l’Ile.
Only produced in a limited edition of seven pieces, this expensive watch is also the most complicated double-face watch. Tour de l’Ile is made with a totally original combination of horological complications (that is, features beyond the simple telling of the time of day) and astronomical indications composing a list of sixteen different points including a minute repeater, sunset time, perpetual calendar, second time zone, a tourbillion device, the equation of time and a representation of the night sky.
One of the top 10 most expensive watches in the world. -1.5millions
Limited Edition of only 7 pieces worldwide.
A blog that shows no other things but timepieces, or anything that could related to time.
As i constantly trying to put as much stuffs in as i could, whatever you need or you want and i dont have, please feel free to email me, the link can be found at the bottom.
Thank you and have a pleasant day!
-Joseph
