Six watches, six stories. More than 550 timepieces were submitted to the Vacheron Constantin Concours d’Élégance Horlogère, with 34 ultimately selected as finalists.
Spanning pocket watches and wristwatches made between 1755 and 1999, the selection reflects the breadth of the Maison’s history. These six examples, drawn from different categories, illustrate that diversity.
Chiming Mechanisms: Quarter-Hour Repeater Pocket Watch, 1822/1823
This red gold pocket watch pairs a guilloché dial with a 16-ligne, key-wound movement and a quarter-hour repeater. Measuring 41mm in diameter, it represents an early chapter in the Concours’ survey of Vacheron Constantin timepieces, with its combination of mechanical complication and decorative finishing.
Métiers d’art: Wristwatch with Enamel Map of the Americas, 1950
A map of the Americas takes centre stage on the reverse of this yellow gold wristwatch, created using cloisonné and miniature enamel. Powered by the hand-wound Calibre 466 and measuring 32mm, the watch offers a distinctive example of the artistic work represented among the Concours finalists.
Multiple Complications: “Don Pancho”, 1940
A one-off creation, “Don Pancho” combines a minute repeater with a full date display indicated by a retrograde hand. Its bespoke, hand-wound 11-ligne calibre is housed in a yellow gold tonneau-shaped case. The watch stands out in the Multiple Complications category for bringing several functions together in a single individual piece.
Chronographs: Ref. 4072, 1940
The steel Ref. 4072 is an example of a particularly rare version of this Vacheron Constantin chronograph. Its hand-wound Calibre 295 features a chronograph with a 45-minute counter, while the silver dial includes a telemeter scale. The 34mm case gives this finalist a more understated presence than its technical specification might suggest.
Chronomètre Royal: Ref. 2215, 1976
The Ref. 2215 departs from a conventional round case with a shape that sits between square and rectangular. Its steel case measures 35 by 36mm, framing a black dial punctuated by three baguette-cut diamond hour markers. Inside is the self-winding Calibre 1096, making this a distinctive design among the Chronomètre Royal finalists.
Astronomical Complications: Skeletonised Perpetual Calendar, 1999
This yellow gold wristwatch brings together a skeletonised dial, perpetual calendar and moon-phase display. It is powered by the ultra-thin automatic Calibre 1120 QP SQ, with the calendar shown in English and white sub-dials set against the openworked movement. At 36mm, it represents a late-20th-century expression of Vacheron Constantin’s technical and aesthetic range.
A Concours Beyond Complications
These six watches represent only a fraction of the 34 finalists, selected after an initial assessment of authenticity, eligibility and documentation, followed by judging that considered factors including history, rarity and impact on watchmaking. The Concours also places emphasis on qualities beyond technical specification, including condition, provenance, elegance and emotional value.
Organised at the initiative of Phillips in association with Bacs & Russo, the Vacheron Constantin Concours d’Élégance Horlogère will exhibit the finalist watches at Hôtel Président Wilson in Geneva from 4 to 8 November 2026, with the awards to be announced on 10 November.
More than a showcase of historic timepieces, the Concours offers an opportunity to reconsider how a watch’s significance can be measured — through its construction and design, its place in the Maison’s history, and the stories it carries across generations.
