Hatching Astronomic Sphere Clock by Vacheron Constantin

'L’Esprit des Cabinotiers' - The one-of-a-kind mystery clock that literally emerges from a hatching sphere - Created for the 250th anniversary of Vacheron Constantin.

The incubating clockwork consists of a golden sphere engraved by hand according to the sky chart drawn by Robert de Vaugondy (1723-1786), cartographer and geographer to Louis XV and creator of two large globes, one celestial and the other terrestrial. The sphere is composed of eight mechanical petals symbolizing the lotus flower, which may be progressively opened by means of an extremely sophisticated spring mechanism. The keys to the mystery and its revelation are known exclusively to the one owner of the object. The automata flower delicately reveals its heart, a timepiece endowed with a wide range of functions and complications (detailed below photos). Sold at auction for nearly $2,000,000.











Technical specifications

GLOBE

Materials: 18-carat 750 pink gold (5N)
Diameter: 220 mm
Form and construction: Globe divided into a fixed half-sphere and 8 petals opening by means of 16 connecting rods linked to the telescopic shaft (on tiny sapphire balls) carrying the timepiece, driven by the mechanical motor housed within the base.
Finishing: The outside of the globe is in natural polished gold and features a depiction of the position of the stars on September 17th 1755 (date of the first document mentioning the existence of the House of Vacheron), decorated with a hand engraving inspired by the work of Robert de Vaugondy. The inside, enhanced by slender polished gold ribs, is finely satin-brushed.

CLOCK

Materials: 18-carat 750 pink gold (5N), Corundum
Diameter and thickness: 145 mm, 70 mm
Shape and construction: A cylinder and 2 sapphire crystal domes connected by a frame in 5N pink gold. An openworked support links the clock to the telescopic shaft at the centre of the sphere. Two holes for winding and time-setting are drilled into the rear dome.
Glasses: Sapphire crystal, glareproofed on both faces.

DIALS

Dial material: 18-carat yellow gold
Material for appliques: 18-carat pink gold (5N)
Dial description: Silvered with special 250th anniversary hand-guilloch? motif, minute disc encircling the dial in silvered 18-carat gold with engraved indications. ?Grand feu? miniature enamelled 12-segment outer disc.



MOVEMENT

Indications & functions :
1. Hour on 12-hour display
2. Minutes
3. Deadbeat seconds
4. Hour on 24-hour display
5. Power reserve
6. Name of the day
7. Date of the day (perpetual)
8. Name of the month
9. Number of the year within the leap-year cycle
10. Equation of time
11. Age of the moon
12. Phases of the moon
13. Temperature
14. Astronomical calendar giving the position of the sun according to the Gregorian calendar. This mechanism was built on the basis of calculations by the mathematician Charles Etienne Louis CAMUS (1699-1768) and the watchmaking mechanical engineer Antide JANVIER (1751-1835).
15. Hours and quarters striking automatically in passing and on request, with the possibility of preventing the automatic striking.

Other technical characteristics:

Energy: Mechanical, twin-barrel, manual key winding
Regulating organs: Mono-metallic balance. Isochronous balance-spring ending in a Phillips curve, micrometric index (patented by Vacheron Constantin in 1884), Straight-line lever escapement with constant force system applied each second to the escape-wheel. This system precisely measures out the energy required for the regulator to perform 5 vibrations of an ideal and invariable amplitude.
Frequency: 18,000 vibrations per hour
Power reserve: Over seven days

Main dimensions:
Caging diameter: 125 mm
Total diameter: 129 mm
Total thickness: 41 mm


via The Purists --> Link
Quarter Millennieum of Vacheron Constantin auction --> Link

Related posts;
Christiaan van der Klauuw Astronomical Watches --> Link
Sethosphere Globe Clock --> Link


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Unusual Vacheron Constantin 1930-1972

1940s "Square"

Some 'out of the ordinary' vintage Vacheron Constantin wristwatches circa 1930-1970...

1949 Black Mystery Dial

1938 Asymmetric Oval

1970s with Hidden Lugs

1960s Curved Asymmetric
& 1972 Dual Time "Prestige de la France"

1945 with Segmented Bezel

1951 with Oversize Lugs

1948 w/ Double Rim

Modernist Circle-Square

1930 "Montre à Volets" with Shutters
Previously featured here-->Link

Many featured above were from Antiquorum auctions.

Related Posts;
Vacheron Constantin
Gilbert Albert Patek Philippe
Patek Philippe Top Hat
Other Deco Posts

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Shutter Watches - Vacheron & Constantin's "Montre à Volets"

With my recent blog about automobile grille watches, I found it aesthetically appropriate to follow with the 1930 Vacheron & Constantin "Montre à Volets" shutter watches. Designed by Verger Frères, they feature concealed dials under hinged panels in 18k Art Deco cases. 





“Jalousie", is the re-introduction of the shutter watch by Vacheron & Constantin in the 90's. A cabochon sapphire is used for the switch to open the shutters revealing the dial.

"Minute Man" by David Colman for The New York Times

From this weekend's New York Times "T" Magazine;

MINUTE MAN
WHO HAS TIME FOR COMPLICATED WATCHES? NOT DAVID COLMAN.

It was one thing when the cellphone replaced the cigarette. But now killer apps have replaced killer abs, and the chicest parties throng with guys showing how they can make their iPhones look like Magic 8 Balls. It’s enough to make a man long for the days when all you heard from even the costliest accessory was the faint tick of a sleek watch.

But these days, the watch thing is also complicated — literally. Watches, like phones, are now viaducts of nonessential information. And the more complications (as extraneous indicators are called in the trade), the rarer and more expensive the timepiece. Moon phases, leap years, multiple time zones, multiple-dial chronographs, depth meters, power reserves. One very cool watch, Meccanico, by de Grisogono, looks like an old-fashioned L.C.D. but is in fact mechanical, made of fluorescent green pieces that move in and out of slots to create those squared-off numbers. In a similar vein, Audemars Piguet has recreated the old-school chronograph with its Royal Oak Carbon Concept. Tricked out with ceramic, titanium and carbon with a special ‘‘linear chronograph,’’ the little time machine looks like something James Bond would use to stop a ‘‘Quantum of Solace.’’ Or, at the very least, maybe it could tell him when to duck to avoid one. It also features the most sublime and silly complication of all: the tourbillon, which is so complicated, almost metacomplicated, that I can’t understand what it really is or does, and have given up trying. If someone who does understand tries to explain it to you, move away quickly or you and your watch can kiss a few hours goodbye.

de Grisogono Meccanico (prev feature->link)

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Carbon Concept
(previous feature->link)

I can tell you this: it was invented at the turn of the 19th century by Abraham-Louis Breguet, one of history’s great watchmakers. In an effort to minimize the effects of gravity and instability on the pocketwatch and keep time more accurately, he devised a rotating cage for the escapement (please don’t ask) and balance wheel (ditto).

Tourbillon

No one seems positive, however, that gravity is that big a problem for today’s watches. Even so, the tourbillon remains the last word in superfluous virtuosity, and whatever it does and whether it really uperfluous virtuosity, and whatever it does and whether it really does it or not, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and all the other best names make them, and they all cost as much as taking out a hit on your boss. So choose wisely.

Just to give you the most for your money, watchmakers put extra ingenuity in showing tourbillons whirling and whooshing away. The young and ambitious watch house Greubel Forsey makes, among others, a remarkable Quadruple Tourbillon that resembles a modern version of the Antikythera Mechanism, the ancient clocklike device recovered more than a century ago from an ancient Mediterranean shipwreck. Using X-ray tomography that allows them to peer through the centuries of corrosion and buildup, scientists have discovered that the fabled, mysterious 2,100-year-old thingamajig was able to keep track of, for starters, the four-year cycle of the Olympic Games, the frequency of solar eclipses and the entire Metonic calendar year (which was more like two decades).

Greubel Forsey Quadruple Tourbillon
(previous features->link)

Antikythera Mechanism
(previous feature->link)

So complications are nothing new. Lately, though, some watchmakers have forsaken the Old World charm of a 19th-century face for the midcentury masculinity that has made ‘‘Mad Men’’ such a hit. These include Vacheron Constantin’s fully customizable Quai de l’Ile (created by the same man who designed the Swiss bank notes), Girard- Perregaux’s Vintage 1945 Off-Center Hour, Patek Philippe’s newest version of its superthin Grand Complication and the one-handed watch by the ultrastylish Swiss watchmaker Jaquet Droz.

Vacheron Constantin Quai de l’Ile

Girard Perregaux 1945 Off-Center Hour & Minute

Jaquet Droz One-handed Numerus Clausus

Carla Bruni-Sarkozy understands the power of simplicity: the first lady of France made her flashy husband lose the chunky Rolex and gave him a simple, sleek Patek Philippe. It became an instant symbol of his newly understated presidential élan.

Then again, customizable watches like Vacheron Constantin’s choose-your-owncomplications beauty may soon be the 21st century’s most desirable status symbol. But if that’s the case, why can’t it be customized to indicate worthier complications? The size of my carbon footprint? My biceps? My bank balance? The sky-high number of my I.Q., or my discreetly low number of friends on Facebook? Or why not one that keeps track of my calorie intake, my stress level and my dry cleaning? You know, something more like a … wristwife.

But as any potential mate would soon discover, I also come fully loaded with complications.

Original article on The New York Times-->LINK

See also;
All Watch Complication Posts
All Tourbillon Posts

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2009 Only Watch Presentation in Geneva - Underthedial Report from Ian Skellern

Impressions and images from Geneva - Ian Skellern visits the "Only Watch" preview in Switzerland, weeks before the auction later this month in Monaco.

"I visited the Only Watch 2009 exhibition at Patrizzi & Co's Geneva show room yesterday evening and despite the crowds managed to take a few photos."

Patrizzi & Co Geneva is in a beautiful pedestrian only street.

Here are a few photos of the timepieces at the recent Only Watch Geneva exhibition at Patrizzi & Co.

THE WATCHES

Hublot. If (like me) you sometimes think that it must be virtually impossible for Hublot to come up yet with another interesting variation of the same watch, they do. Nothing out of the ordinary, but a striking design.

Jaquet Droz. Jaquet Droz are starting to make stunning fired-enamel dial look easy, but it isn't. The ceramic case should ensure that this watch looks as good in 20 years as it does now.

Louis Vuitton. Turning cubes to tell the time made me think of URWERK, but neverthless it was good to see that Louis Vuitton make an effort to realize something truly unique and not just a new dial on an existing watch.

MB&F. It was as interesting eavesdropping on comments as looking at the watches and nowhere more so than the MB&f case. 'Is that a butterfly? Is that barbed-wire? Gruesome! How could you possibly wear it? It's fantastic!' The negative comments I heard easily outnumbered the positive by a factor of 5 to 1, but I am sure Max Büsser was smiling because in my short time there, more people were talking passionately about this watch than any other.

Montblanc. The dial is too busy for my taste, but there is no denying the quality and superb finish of this Star Nicolas Rieussec Monopusher Chronograph Open Date. If the bidding is related to name length this will be a winner.

Omega. The Omega Ploprof wins my 'What were they thinking?' award. There is nothing I like about the design of this watch, but then, I've never been accused of having impeccable taste. It is certainly a watch that attracts the eye.

Girard-Perregaux. At first glance I was disappointed in this watch as I expected more from Girard-Perregaux, but the more I learned, the more I liked it. The world time should be a useful complication for the type of people likely to be bidding and the ceramic case looks sublime.

Franck Muller. This was another brand I feel might have done more. A few brands really excelled themselves and that really raised the bar for the others. No doubt this is a very special watch, but if I saw it on somebody's wrist, I'd think 'Franck Muller', and not 'Wow! What's that Franck Muller?'

Franc Vila. This watch was another contender for my 'What were they thinking?' award and I nearly laughed out load when I first saw it. But then the originality of the design slowly won me over and, while it would not be a watch found on my little wrist, it does have something of the iconic Ikepod about it.

deLaCour. I think that you are either a deLaCour fan or you're not. There is no middle ground. And when you think that large unusual watches no longer have the power to surprise, one does. Unfortunately, this one did not surprise me in a positive way as it was far too big and far too busy for me.

De Bethune. If I had to pick one watch here for myself, it would be this sensational De Bethune pocket watch.

Corum. This was another favourite. With this watch Corum have taken their single bridge into the 21st century.

BNB Concept Confrérie Horlogère. If I could have chosen two to take home, this would have been the second. Great design and fascinating to look at. I loved it!


Chaumet. We do not hear much about Chaumet's watchmaking so it's good to see them step out onto the stage. Simple, but elegant with an interesting case shape.

Chanel. Another watch obviously meant for another audience, not me. There are interesting elements in the watch, especially the ceramic bracelet, but I just don't 'get it'.

Cartier. The three different dials of this Cartier Santos would normally be enough to provoke a 'Wow!' from me, and it did when I saw it (different designs) at the SIHH earlier in the year. I expect more than a unique dial design (or three) from Cartier. Nice watch but I'd like to see Cartier stretch themselves a bit more next time.

Cabestan. Now I love the Cabestan, but this is another watch that disappointed. I expect much more - and perhaps unfairly- of an 'Only Watch' than a unique piece, I expect the watch to be truly distinctive and to make a strong statement. The 'normal' Cabestan already makes such a strong statement that a special model has to be much much more. I love this watch, but want much more.

And this is just plain greed talking because for all of the brands involved, especially the smaller ones, just the fact of donating a watch, let alone developing a unique piece, is a major commitment in itself and one we should all be grateful for, but . . .

Breguet. This was another favourite and I felt that Breguet got the spirit of 'Only Watch', not to simply make a one-off, but to make something truly unique.

Bovet. When I saw this watch I didn't think 'Mona Lisa', my first thought was 'Pascal Raffy' (CEO of Bovet). This watch is the essence of Bovet and is certainly the essence of Pascal Raffy.

Blancpain. I am not at all a fan of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms, though I appreciate that I appear to be in a minority. However, this one - the 500 Fathoms -I like.

Bell & Ross. The exception that proves the rule? I have said that I expect Only Watch timepieces to offer something more than a new dial variation, but this diamond-encrusted skull and crossbones makes such a bold statement that nothing more is needed. It's not for me, but I'm sure somebody will love it (and hopefully two people to drive up the bidding).

Audemars Piguet. Take a beautiful Audemars Piguet Equation of Time and add 'ONLY WATCH MONACO12h30' is big capital letter at the top of the dial: What on earth were they thinking? There is so much on this this watch that is so right, but can you appreciate the dial without having your gaze drawn continually to the headline at the top? I can't.

Zenith. If retro is the new contemporary, then Zenith is onto something. I wonder if this watch signals a new direction for the brand (I hope so).

Van Cleef & Arpels. Here's another watch proving what a hypocrite I am. 'Midnight in Monaco' is hardly an inspired variation of their Midnight in Paris, but with every Van Cleef & Arpels complication I see, I cannot help but feel that they have no peer when it comes to crafting interesting and absolutely beautiful watches for women. I am sorry my photography let this watch down, because it is poetry (but they should do more next time).

Vacheron Constantin. Come on Vacheron, take a watch, the Quai de l’Ile, which has been designed to make unique variations and make a - gasp !- unique variation. I know that there is a bit more to it than that - tantalum and palladium are very difficult case materials to work with - but it just doesn't look different enough to me. Vacheron Constantin merits being held to a higher standard and they didn't reach that for me with this model.

Ulysse Nardin. What has saved me saying the same thing about this Freak than I said about the Cabestan is that the Freak has been out of the news longer, so seeing it again after a break, especially in this black-dialed rendition, had the power to shock.


Hermes. For a company famous for their leather goods, this alligator-clad 8-day travel clock appears to be appropriate and something different.

Please bear in mind that the opinions expressed above are the result of a fairly quick walk around a hot and crowded exhibition. I am well aware that my views are inconsistent (but hey, so am I) and they may well change . . .in fact some views are starting to change already.

I strongly recommend that you visit the Only Watch 2009 website and click on any image to learn more.

The Only Watch 2009 world tour was in Geneva recently and if the number of guests at Patrizzi & Co's Geneva show room yesterday evening was indicative of interest, the charity auction has every chance of being a big success.


Patrizzi Auction Website --> LINK

Ian Skellern's original Only Watch 2009 exhibition in Geneva post & Watch Photo Post via Horomundi

Ian's Underthedial Facebook page --> LINK

Related Posts;
All Current and Past "Only Watch" Auctions
Haute Horology Stories


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