Mario Canonizado 
Vacheron Constantin is but one of the brands looking to start Watches & Wonders 2025 off with a bang, as they release an all-new lineup of Traditionelle models!
Watches & Wonders 2025 is now in full swing, and this year might just be the biggest one yet. Dozens of brands across the world are now congregated in Geneva for a week’s worth of horological celebrations, all vying for just one goal: to completely knock your socks off! Among these chosen few is none other than Vacheron Constantin, who due to their place within the industry’s ‘Big Three’ have typically higher stakes to impress. However, they’ll need to really bring their A-game to stun at this year’s Watches & Wonders; 2025 marks the 270th anniversary of the esteemed brand. Not only does this indicate their 27th decade in operation, but it also extends their all-time record as the longest-running uninterrupted watch manufacturer in history!
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Good thing, then, that Vacheron Constantin holds themselves to dizzyingly high standards! While they already started the party in advance with the release of the new Vacheron Constantin 222 and the opening of a pop-up experience in Abu Dhabi, the Swiss watchmaker looks to keep the revelry going with a duet of new limited edition Traditionnelle references!
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Not too long ago, the Watch Advice team – myself included – were invited to the grand re-opening of the new Vacheron Constantin boutique in Melbourne. Not only was it an amazing night, complete with custom cocktails and friends new and old, but the event also granted us access to a range of never-before-seen models. While all the unreleased watches were as dazzling as the next, it was the new Traditionnelle watches that truly caught my eye. While they were only introduced relatively recently in the late 2000s, the Traditionnelle collection is easily among some of my favourites in the entire Vacheron Constantin lineup. Typically modest in stature, these timepieces evoked the design language of 18th Century traditional watchmaking brought to life by the ruthless technicality and innovations of today. They’re low-key enough that you won’t get stopped on the street, but elegant enough so that when someone notices it in conversation, you know they will be listening.
Related Reading: The Most Celebrated Watch Collections by Vacheron Constantin
These new Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle models, limited to 370 watches per reference, are just that – elegantly understated – and then some. Measuring at 38mm wide, 47mm long and just 7.77mm thick, the Traditionnelle 270th Anniversary editions maintain the same petite silhouette as the majority of their collection. The 18th Century inspired aesthetic, available in either 18k pink gold or dense 950 platinum, the Traditionnelle distinguishes itself through its stepped lugs, a fluted case back, and a slim bezel. The dial showcases a railway-style minute track, faceted Dauphine hands, and applied gold baton hour markers.
Having experienced the watches myself for a time at the Collins St boutique, I can tell you firsthand that the size delightfully betrays the overall wearing experience. The leather strap, extracted from the alligator mississippiensis – the fancy scientific name of the American alligator – moulds well to the wrist, complete with a metal-matched Maltese Cross pin buckle. Yet, the density of the 18k gold provides a more significant wrist presence to the watch. This is only compounded on the 950 platinum piece, which likely weighs closer to the weight of a full steel watch in a bracelet than it does an elegant dress piece. Looking down onto my wrist, however, I can hardly believe that the silhouette of the Traditionnelle 270th Anniversary editions are not as they seem.
What truly steals the show for me, though, is the all-new dial crafted exclusively for all 270th Anniversary edition models. Stemming from a Maltese Cross motif located between seven and eight o’clock, the guilloché dial has been elegantly cut into a geometric pattern that dazzles from the wrist at any angle. Not only does this pay tribute to the Vacheron Constantin logo, but the Maltese Cross represents the brand’s enduring dedication to precision. It recalls an ancient calibre component linked to the barrel, ensuring a steady power flow to the spring for optimal performance.
My favourite detail by far is how the straight cuts of the dial align perfectly with every single line of the Maltese Cross motif. It’s a masterfully engineered, yet naturally serene pattern that is never not pleasing to the eyes. While Vacheron Constantin describes it as a ‘geometric pattern’ they don’t explicitly reveal what that pattern is. Likely, they want you to discover it for yourself – but since I’ve worn it, might was well let you know! Sorry, Vacheron Constantin – if you didn’t want me to talk about it, maybe you shouldn’t have made it this beautiful!
Speaking of beautiful, turning the watch around gives way to a whole new world. The aforementioned fluted case back is see-through, showcasing Vacheron Constantin’s 4400AS/270 manual wind movement. With a luxurious 4Hz (28,800VpH) beat rate atop a capable 65-hour power reserve, you can trust that these new references will tick reliably beside you at any formal event you attend. Besides that, the 4400AS/270 also comes equipped with the Poinçon de Genève, one of horology’s rarest marks of exquisite craftsmanship. The official seal of the City and Canton of Geneva, the mark denotes exceptional chronometric accuracy and high-quality Genevan materials, among other things, and is one of the hardest achievements to secure in the industry due to its unforgiving requirements. Imagine trying to make 370 pieces that all fall under that kind of standard!
If you’re a Vacheron Constantin geek, you might recognise that this is not an entirely new calibre, as the 4400AS has powered the Traditionnelle collection for quite some time now. But, the 4400AS/270 also sports the exclusive 270th Anniversary logo, engraved atop one of the main plates of the movement. That’s not all, though, as all limited editions are also complete with a ‘côte unique’ finish across the movement’s bridges. Though it appears relatively simple in appearance, its execution involves a perfect blend of machine and hand finishing, requiring the heaviest amounts of precision and craftsmanship – and most likely patience, too.
My Thoughts
Watches & Wonders is one of the biggest and most important events in the watch industry, but the mass exposure that the event draws to the horological world is a double-edged sword. With brands left, right, and centre all trying to steal the spotlight from one another, it’s far too easy to get lost in the proverbial sauce. And as the saying goes, “the bigger they are, the harder they fall” – with Vacheron Constantin’s 270th Anniversary upon us, all eyes are on them to ensure that this exciting milestone of the brand is celebrated to the fullest.
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With these new Traditionnelle models, Vacheron Constantin’s certainly doing the absolute most to exceed the expectations of the hungry horological crowds. Sure, the Traditionnelle isn’t exactly bombastic in nature, but in the case of Vacheron Constantin, abandoning tradition – especially 270 years of it – would only prove to be detrimental. Instead, they have chosen to push the limits of what they know they are good at, completing the Traditionnelle 270th Anniversary models with subtle yet extremely complex nods to their storied watchmaking prowess. From the Maltese Cross guilloché motif, to the côte unique movement finishing, to even the insane engineering denoted by the Geneva Seal, the Traditionnelle 270th Anniversary not only serves as a tribute to 18th Century watchmaking traditions, but as a love letter to the history of the brand itself – and what is sure to be the many years to come.
References: 82172/000P-H118 (Pink Gold)/82172/000P-H062(Platinum)
Specifications:
- Dimensions: 38mm case diameter x 47mm lug-to-lug x 7.77mm thickness
- Case Material: 18k Pink gold/950 Platinum
- Dial: Opaline silver with Maltese Cross guilloché motif
- Movement: Manual wind 4400AS/270 with Poinçon de Genève (Geneva Seal) and small seconds complication
- Power Reserve: 65h
- Water Resistance: 30m (3bar)
- Strap: Gray American alligator (alligator mississippiensis) leather strap with pink gold/platinum Maltese Cross pin buckle
