In the world of Vacheron Constantin, the Patrimony collection best expresses the manufacturing company’s genetic makeup – the inheritance of skills painstakingly acquired since its inception. Their round cases span the past and the future as an eternal design of natural elegance that needs no adornment, for the simple beauty of time-honored workmanship is sufficient to denote Swiss watchmaking of the highest order.

Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph Perpetual Calendar
Last week at SIHH 2010, Vacheron Constantin, one of world’s oldest and most prestigious watch companies, presented four exceptional platinum novelties from Patrimony collection. They are the Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph, Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph Perpetual Calendar, Patrimony Traditionnelle Calibre 2253, and Patrimony Traditionnelle Calibre 2755. Although I didn’t get the chance to try them on, those VC novelties were very appealing just with their distinctive design and admirable identity.
Today, I am going to introduce the first two watches: the Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph and Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph Perpetual Calendar.

Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph
As seen in the pictures, there is only one difference between the two watches – the complication of Perpetual Calendar. The Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph Perpetual Calendar “Calibre 1141QP”, which embodies the Vacheron Constantin convention in styling. It brings together a chronograph and a perpetual calendar driven by a highly regarded hand-wound movement. The Calibre 1141 is an exceptional design that has been used in some of the best chronographs. Experts consider it a model of highly complex chronograph construction.
These new entrants of the Patrimony family are all made in Platinum, the world’s most rarest metal. Platinum’s rarity, purity and incorruptibility qualify it as supreme among symbols of excellence. While 18-carat gold contains 75% of the pure metal, platinum is 95% pure. Platinum is also 30 times scarcer than gold and there are very few deposits. Its hardness and density make it more resistant than any other metal and thus the best choice for an everlasting object. A scratch in platinum displaces rather than removes material, avoiding the loss through wear and tear of a softer metal.
Platinum’s ability to retain its full weight and value has made it popular as a token of eternity. Platinum has other remarkable features: it is malleable and very ductile. A gram of the metal can be drawn into a thread almost two kilometers long. Long reserved for royalty, platinum conveys unrivalled distinction, attracting both arbiters of taste and well-informed collectors. Such owners of Vacheron Constantin timepieces in platinum know that they belong to a most exclusive club.

Technical Specifications:
Reference: Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph Perpetual Calendar 47292/000P-9510 and 47292/000P-9590
Indications: Hours, minutes; Small seconds at 9 o’clock; Column-wheel chronograph; 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock; Centre chronograph hand; Perpetual calendar and precision moon-phases at 6 o’clock
Movement: Calibre 1141 QP; Beats 18,000/h; Jewels 21; Power reserve 46 h; Winding hand-wound
Case: watch in platinum with silvered or dark grey opaline dial and black alligator leather strap, folding clasp in platinum
Glass: sapphire, convex, antireflective coating on both sides
Back: see-through sapphire-glass back
Water-resistant: 30 meters
Diameter: 43mm
Height: 14mm

Technical Specifications:
Reference:Patrimony Traditionnelle Chronograph 47192/000G-9504
Indications:Hours, minutes; Small seconds at 9 o’clock; Column-wheel chronograph; 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock; Centre chronograph hand
Movement: Calibre 1141; Beats 18,000/h; Jewels 21; Power reserve 42 h; Winding hand-wound
Case: watch in platinum with silvered brushed dial and black alligator leather strap, folding clasp in platinum
Glass: sapphire, convex, antireflective coating on both sides
Back: see-through sapphire-glass back
Water-resistant: 30 meters
Diameter: 42mm
Height: 13mm