BY DHANANJAY PATHAK
Vacheron Constantin has been off to a blazing start in 2019. Just about a month back the brand showcased some amazing watches such as the Vacheron Constantin Overseas Tourbillon and the Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Twin Beat Perpetual Calendar at this year’s SIHH event and while we are still busy analyzing and unraveling the finer details of these pieces, Vacheron Constantin has surprised us by introducing another new watch, the Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Manual-Winding Excellence Platine. Featuring a case and dial made out of platinum and powered by a trustworthy manually wound movement, this new watch is the latest addition to the brands Platine line of watches.
Vacheron Constantin introduced its prestigious Collection Excellence Platine in the year 2006 and has since then added a number of watches to it exhibiting the brands love for the precious metal. The Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Manual-Winding Excellence Platine that you see pictured here is not an entirely new watch as there is a black dial version of it already available, but this new variant offers something special.
The base plate of this new grey dial variant has also been made out of Platinum 950 similar to the crown, the case, and the strap buckle. Further to that, the dial has also been sandblasted to give it a textured Matt finish. As for the time telling functions, the hours and minutes can be read using the elegant looking dauphine style handset at the center whereas the seconds have been presented through a sub seconds dial at 6. Both the handset and the applied markers are made out of white gold and the second’s hand has been heat blued providing a nice contrast against the dial.
Being a dress watch, the platinum case of the Traditionnelle Manual-Winding Excellence Platine is perfectly sized. It measures 38mm wide and is just 7.7mm thick which implies that the watch would sit comfortably on most wrists and easily slide under the cuffs. There is a sapphire crystal on both front as well as the back and the case is water resistant to 30 meters which is apt for a watch of this type. Powering the watch is the brand’s in-house hand-wound caliber 4400AS. It operates at a frequency of 4Hz, offers a healthy power reserve of 65 hours and has been certified with the Geneva seal signifying that the movement has been built and tested to some of the highest standards in watchmaking. The movement has been beautifully decorated and can be appreciated through the exhibition case back.
In all the Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Manual-Winding Excellence Platine is the epitome of understated elegance. The watch would come attached to a blue alligator strap with contrast stitching done in platinum and is limited to a production run of only 75 pieces. The retail price on this beauty would be EUR 35,600. Visit Vacheron Constantin here.
