Vacheron Constantin 18k gold vintage watch - c1946

Description

This very special watch comes from the private collection of Doc, well-known in the Vacheron Constantin international community and one of the foremost experts on Vacheron worldwide. Doc is an aficionado and collector and a regular contributor to the official Vacheron Constantin forum The Hour Lounge, of which Doc was one of the founders. If you go to the Hour Lounge site you will find countless posts and discussions by Doc. Please watch my auctions as I will be listing more of Doc’s lovely Vacheron watches.

The important point about buying a watch from a serious collector such as Doc is that you are safe in the knowledge that the watch has been carefully chosen with an expert eye and looked after extremely carefully.

This beautiful Vacheron Constantin [Ref 4034] watch is very special. Dating from 1946, the watch is in excellent all original condition - a collectors dream. The watch was purchased by Doc at Antiquorum in 2006. This is your chance to own a very special premium collection standard watch. According to Dominic Bernaz, a Director of Vacheron, the watch was bought on 8th December 1947 by a member of the US armed forces, based in Germany. Mr. Bernaz also states that only 20 to 30 of this watch were made.

The watch features a gleaming solid 18ct gold case, 17 jewel hand wound movement [Cal 435/3C] and an unrestored dial. The photos of the watch do not do justice to this beautiful watch so if you like the photos you will be thrilled with the actual watch.

A note about Vacheron Constantin. Vacheron made their first watch in 1755 and are history’s oldest watch makers. They began making watches almost 100 years earlier than Patek Philippe. Along with Patek they are acknowledged to be the world’s finest watchmaker.

My asking price is already fair for a watch that will only rise further in value . Such is the high quality of the watch, I will include a six month written guarantee on the movement, which is long enough for you to assess it. I also include a professional insurance valuation, in excess of my asking price. Also, I offer a full refund if you are not entirely happy, as long as the watch is returned within seven days if UK customer, fourteen days if overseas, in the same condition. Please feel free to contact me to arrange to view the watch in central London.

The two piece solid 18ct yellow gold case is in excellent condition, with no significant wear, and no nasty polishing. It is pagoda shaped with stepped sides. It is obviously very high quality, as you would expect from Vacheron and features lovely fluted teardrop lugs. It measures 22mm wide, excluding the original winding crown x 8.5mm thick, including crystal x 38.5mm long, including the lugs. The case back closes perfectly and the inside is correctly signed ‘Vacheron & Constantin', ‘Swiss’, ‘295532’ [the case reference number] with the appropriate Swiss hallmarks for solid 18ct gold.

The lovely original, unrestored matte silver dial is very clean, showing minor wear around the hidden edges, as photographed, and is signed 'Vacheron & Constantin’, ‘Geneve' and ‘Swiss’. The gold Arabic numerals and gold dot indexes are applied. The original gold baton hands, including sub seconds hand, are also in superb condition, as is the original flat top crystal lens.

The hand wound 17 jewel Vacheron Constantin tonneau shaped movement [Cal 435/3C] is excellent quality, as you would expect, centre jewelled and features rhodium plating, ‘fausses cotes’ decoration, straight line lever escapement, monometallic balance adjusted to temperatures and self compensating Breguet balance spring. It is signed ‘Vacheron & Constantin’, ‘Geneve’, ‘Swiss’, ‘Seventeen 17 Jewels’, ‘Adjusted To Temperatures’, ‘435/3C’ and the ‘441666’ movement reference number. The movement is in simply excellent condition, winding and setting smoothly and is in perfect working order, keeping very good time for its age.

The watch is on a used leather strap, which I can change for either a dark brown or black new Hirsch strap at the request of the customer. The watch comes complete with a quality watch box, for safekeeping.

A simply superb watch from one of history's most famous watch makers; serious collection standard. Will provide an excellent financial investment as well as a possession to enjoy.