If any watchmaker has earned the right to describe the (otherwise perfectly ordinary) task of unveiling a new product as a ‘quest’, it must surely be Vacheron Constantin. This year, the Genevan maison celebrates 270 years of continuous operation – a feat that technically makes it older, among other things, than the United States of America.
Given the momentousness of this occasion, the brand had a lot of ground to cover at Watches & Wonders 2025, with a majority of the new releases dedicated, in some way or another, to Vacheron Constantin’s 270th anniversary.
In line with the brand’s tact over the past decade, there were, of course, feats of heroically complicated traditional watchmaking – such as the all-new Calibre 2162 movement (see below). Yet, great care has also been taken to spread the joy around, as shown in a wide range of more attainable, commercially minded pieces in the Traditionnelle and Patrimony collections.
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Limited Editions With ‘Distinctive Dials’ In The Patrimony & Traditionnelle Collections
Vacheron Constantin’s splashiest unveiling at the shows in Geneva was arguably its range of ‘distinctive dial’ creations: eight anniversary-themed riffs on signature timepieces in the brand’s repertoire. Sandrine Donguy, Product & Innovation Director, explained that the Traditionnelle and Patrimony ranges were selected for this task because they “epitomise the understated elegance” so synonymous with the brand.
Formally, these anniversary editions – including the manually-wound Traditionnelle and Patrimony Retrograde Day-Date (first released in 2023) – share the same size and movements as their regular-production namesakes, and are available exclusively in pink or white gold. Those features, familiar to collectors of high-end dress watches, have been enriched with new aesthetics unique to Vacheron Constantin’s 270th anniversary.
Unsurprisingly, the grabbiest of these are the aforementioned ‘distinctive dials’: an explosion of geometries that all intersect between the 7 and 8 o’clock position, in the shape of a Maltese Cross – Vacheron Constantin’s official logo since 1880.
This signature motif is integrated in each watch numerous times throughout: in the half-cross-shaped buckle accompanying a leather strap, or the subtle ‘270’ engraving at the edge of the caseback.
Inside, regardless of whether the movement is of the time-only or more complicated variety, each has been decorated with côte unique stripes: a kind of wavy, naturalistic finishing that is distinct from the more typical Geneva striping. “[It’s] quite symbolic, created by an ancestral craft that had been lost over time and that we had to relearn,” Donguy explains.
“Perpetuating such skills, preserving knowledge and passing it on are key values that define Vacheron Constantin’s ongoing history.”
The Sophisticated New Calibre 2162 QP Movement… And A Platinum Watch To Match
Having unveiled the Berkley (ergo “the world’s most complicated watch”) last year, Vacheron is dialling things back – relatively speaking – in 2025 with the launch of the Traditionnelle Tourbillon Perpetual Calendar.
Sporting the same Maltese cross motif as the eight aforementioned ‘distinctive dial’ releases, it’s easily the most impressive display of technical firepower fielded by Vacheron Constantin at this year’s shows.
Unlike the Berkley, an exercise in pure horological brinkmanship – and the first Grand Complication to integrate a traditional Chinese calendar – this new ultra-complicated Traditionnelle has been conceived primarily with daily wear in mind.
Encased in 42mm of platinum (a metal Vacheron Constantin usually reserves for its ‘Excellence Platine’ collection), it picks up where the ‘Saint Gervais’ left off: similarly, a perpetual calendar outfitted with a tourbillon regulator, released to celebrate an important birthday of the Maison.
Building on that 20-year legacy, the brand has developed a new movement for this release – the Calibre 2162 QP/270. Only 127 watches outfitted with it will be made in 2025. Cynics will infer all sorts of nefarious reasons for this, but the simplest (and most logical by far) is that the difficulty curve, associated with downsizing a tourbillon and perpetual calendar, renders large-scale watchmaking impossible.
Still, for a handful of devoted Vacheron Constantin patrons, this eyewateringly complex incarnation of the Traditionnelle is the ultimate way to celebrate the brand’s 270th anniversary. Almost a quarter of a size thinner than the Saint Gervais, one cannot overstate just how wearable this limited edition is: at home on the wrist, rather than behind a locked display cabinet.
Check out some of our other favourites from Watches & Wonders 2025 below:
- Tudor’s New Watches For 2025 Nail The Brief
- A Legend Reborn: Cartier’s 2025 Tank à Guichets Revival
- Hublot’s Big Bang Turns 20 (And The Celebration Is Spectacular)
- The Accuracy Arms Race: How Grand Seiko Is Leading The Pack In 2025
Be sure to follow our rolling coverage of this year’s show here and via Instagram.
