A BESPOKE PASSION
In order to realize the dream of an enthusiast of fine mechanics, both automotive and horological, the Geneva-based company has deployed all its know-how and designed a spectacular unique edition dashboard watch equipped with a armillary tourbillon.
Since 2006, Vacheron Constantin has had a workshop specializing in made-to-measure instruments produced in unique editions: Les Cabinotiers, whose name is borrowed from the history of watchmaking and the tradition of this exclusive 18th-century craft. This year, Les Cabinotiers Armillary Tourbillon, a spectacular unique timepiece adapted to the interior of an also unique Rolls Royce Amethyst Droptail, was created in response to a challenge from a customer with a passion for both automobiles and timepieces.
The result of a collaboration with Rolls Royce Coachbuild designers, the object consists of a watch set in a base that blends harmoniously into the wood panels of the dashboard.
The first element of this duo features a steel case measuring 43.8mm in diameter and 19.9mm thick, housing the 1990 caliber, a Poinçon de Genève-approved manual-winding movement, clocked at the gentle frequency of 2.5hz and delivering 58 hours of energy. Modelled on the mauve hue of the saddlery, the dial takes up the spirit of a speedometer, with a biretrograde display of hours and minutes that spreads out in a double arc of a circle in the upper part, one inscribed in violet on a white ring and the other in silver printed on the sapphire dial. The lower part gives free rein to the tourbillon, allowing it to express itself freely by making this distinctive armillary structure dance. The second element is a slightly tonneau-shaped frame, also in steel, with polished edges, while the laser-textured, black PVD-coated interior houses the watch. It is completed by a cover with a lock in the shape of the Maltese cross, Vacheron Constantin‘s emblem.
