Think 18K 5N pink gold engraving of a dragon surrounded by floating clouds on Vacheron Constantin’s Traditionnelle Tourbillon “Dragon” timepiece.
For over 260 years, Vacheron Constantin has been synonymous with the artistic craft of hand-engraving. This year, the Swiss luxury watch manufacturer takes the craft to beast mode with an 18K 5N pink gold engraving of a dragon surrounded by floating clouds on its latest Traditionnelle 14-Day Tourbillon “Dragon” timepiece.
Positioned over the tourbillon movement at the 6 o’clock position, the gold dragon appears as if asserting its authority and auspicious powers as depicted in Chinese mythology. Encasing the imperial dragon and its guarded tourbillon on the blue-galvanised dial are equally astounding hand-engraved bezel and lugs, altogether making the watch a must-have for avid collectors.
But the intricate engraving is just one of the brand’s distinguished features; another trait to highlight is its expertise in tourbillon movements. This timepiece accentuates that attribute with the Calibre 2260 tourbillon, a mechanical hand-wound tourbillon movement endowed with an exceptional 14-day power reserve.
The Calibre 2260 features four barrels mounted in coupled pairs, all connected and all unwound simultaneously to guarantee a longer stability in time. While its two large bridges serve to ensure a precise assembly of 231 components, they present additional difficulty to the watchmaker – even the rounding off of the tourbillon bar alone takes over 11 hours of manual craftsmanship to achieve an optimal effect.
As a mark of its quality of craftsmanship, durability, and expertise, the entire watch – not just the movement alone (as with some other timepieces) – is stamped with the Hallmark of Geneva.
Only 8 pieces of the Traditionnelle 14-Day Tourbillon “Dragon” are available, exclusively in Vacheron Constantin’s boutiques in the Asia Pacific region.
Images: Courtesy of Vacheron Constantin