Overseas tourbillon high jewellery: a sporty-chic watch imbued with precious elegance

Source:  Images and content by Vacheron Constantin

Embargo 12 December, 9AM CET

• A first in the Overseas collection: the combination of white gold and the collection’s signature blue dial, along with the setting of baguette-cut diamonds.
• Technical mastery to ensure the slimness of complication movements: a tourbillon powered by ultra-thin Manufacture Calibre 2160.
• A watch adorned with a total of 85 baguette-cut diamonds set on the bezel, index and pin buckle.

Vacheron Constantin enriches its Overseas collection with a new technical and precious tourbillon model. Available in an original combination of white gold with a blue dial, it is also distinguished by its bezel and hour-markers entirely set with baguette-cut diamonds. This 42.5 mm-diameter sporty-chic watch features a slender curvature thanks to its ultra-thin self-winding movement, in-house Calibre 2160 with tourbillon. The watch comes with three interchangeable bracelet/straps. The case-integrated first white gold bracelet is fitted with a folding clasp, while the two additional straps in blue calfskin and rubber are secured by a likewise interchangeable white gold pin buckle set with baguette-cut diamonds.

 Baguette-cut diamonds: a first on the Overseas collection

Vacheron Constantin has chosen the Overseas tourbillon model to introduce two new additions to its collection dedicated to the spirit of travel. For the first time, the model is attired in white gold, a material perfectly suited to its sophisticated nature. To bring out the luminous gleam of the metal, the watch bears the collection’s emblematic satin-brushed blue dial. The second addition is about the colour contrast, enhanced by the setting of 60 diamonds on the six-sided bezel, extending onto the hour-markers. Unlike the other Overseas models, the diamonds set on this piece are baguette-cut, with minimalist contours echoing the watch’s highly structured silhouette. This precious Overseas tourbillon high jewellery is also extremely elegant thanks to its slim case.

Ultra-thin: reflecting technical mastery

The Overseas tourbillon watch offers an excellent interpretation of Vacheron Constantin’s understated, creative aesthetic combined with perfect technical mastery. This symbiosis is notably expressed through the slenderness of its curvature, made possible by its ultra-thin movement, Calibre 2160 measuring a mere 5.65 mm thick. Such proportions – just over 10 mm thick for the cased-up watch – are achieved by means of the 22K gold peripheral rotor ensuring an 80-hour power reserve. This construction not only enhances thinness by eliminating the central axis of rotation of the oscillating weight, but also gives a clearer view of the entire movement from the back.

The show staged by this ultra-thin Calibre 2160 is all the more striking. Drawing all eyes, the ballet performed by the regulator is particularly impressive due to its slender architecture, a veritable technical feat accentuated by the care devoted to the movement finishes. With its circular-grained mainplate; bridges adorned with Côtes de Genève and hand-bevelled, like the tourbillon bar; its frosted wheels as well as its chamfered and polished screws, Calibre 2160 and its 188 components offer a concrete embodiment of technical and precious High Watchmaking. Beating at a frequency at 2.5 Hz (18,000 vibrations per hour), it displays the hours and minutes, as well as the small seconds on the tourbillon carriage.

One watch, three faces

Water-resistant to 50 metres with a screw-down crown, the Overseas tourbillon high jewellery watch features an interchangeable bracelet/strap system. A special feature of the collection, this technical trick enables the straps to be changed entirely tool-free, thereby enabling Overseas watches to take on new looks to match the circumstances. Supplied with an integrated white gold bracelet fitted with a folding clasp, the model adopts a sportier vibe with a blue rubber strap, or a more classic character with a calfskin leather strap in the same shade. Both straps are fitted with a white gold pin buckle, itself interchangeable tool-free and set with 16 baguette-cut diamonds.

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 Interview with Christian Selmoni, Style & Heritage Director

Is baguette-cut gemsetting part of the Vacheron Constantin world?
Baguette-cut diamonds first appeared on certain medieval and Renaissance jewels, but really came into their own at the beginning of the 20^th century. They were particularly popular in the Art Deco style and were well suited to new techniques such as the invisible setting. Vacheron Constantin was quick to adopt baguette-cut diamonds in its creations, as seen in many of the Maison’s historical timepieces. Brilliant-cut and baguette-cut gems often alternate on the same timepiece, the latter disrupting the rhythm of the round, traditional gems, such as on the Traditionnelle tourbillon jewellery watch featuring precisely this combination of 559 round-cut and baguette-cut diamonds on a watch powered by the same Calibre 2160 as the new Overseas. On the other hand, the invisible-set Malte tourbillon regulator is magnificently adorned with 565 exclusively baguette-cut diamonds totalling 19 carats.

Why choose this new baguette cut for an Overseas watch?
Vacheron Constantin’s designers and gemsetters introduced this new cut to the Overseas collection because it is beautifully aligned with its sophisticated character. Compared with the 58-facet brilliant cut most widely used in the jewellery world, the baguette cut with its 25 facets features an edgier, more graphic look that emphasises the diamond’s purity rather than its brilliance. With its right angles, flat surface and sharp edges, the baguette cut reinforces the architectural design of Overseas.

What makes Vacheron Constantin’s Calibre 2160 so exceptional?
Calibre 2160, one of the thinnest tourbillon movements on the market at just 5.65 mm, is a genuine technical feat. For the Maison’s watchmakers who developed this calibre presented in 2018, the challenge was to integrate a tourbillon regulator into an ultra-thin self-winding movement. This type of construction entails twin difficulties. The presence of an oscillating weight and the integration of a tourbillon cage generally imply additional movement thickness. It was therefore necessary to work first on the architecture of the tourbillon itself and then to design a high-efficiency peripheral rotor winding system to achieve an 80-hour power reserve. The watchmakers at Vacheron Constantin were able to respond perfectly to these constraints with ultra-thin Calibre 2160, which is also aesthetically pleasing thanks to the meticulous attention lavished on the decoration.  

For whom is this new Overseas tourbillon intended?
For all devotees of High Watchmaking who appreciate a precious touch. This timepiece represents a magnificent compromise between a technical watch with a sporty look and more formal models. For some time now, the ‘sporty-chic’ segment has been experiencing strong popularity, with the first 1970s models serving as the benchmark. This category of watches offers a host of possible interpretations, from technical to aesthetic, and jewellery! The Overseas tourbillon high jewellery meets all these expectations.

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Summary

With the Overseas tourbillon high jewellery watch, Vacheron Constantin introduces two new features to its collection dedicated to travel and discovery: a new combination of the emblematic Overseas blue dial and a white gold case with integrated bracelet; along with the setting of baguette-cut diamonds on the bezel, hour-markers and pin buckle. This watch with its slender curves is powered by the ultra-thin self-winding in-house Calibre 2160 with tourbillon, measuring just 5.65 mm thick. Beating at a frequency of 2.5 Hz, it ensures an 80-hour power reserve while driving displays of the hours, minutes as well as small seconds on the tourbillon carriage. The watch comes with two additional interchangeable straps in blue rubber and calfskin, themselves fitted with a gemset pin buckle that is itself interchangeable without any need for tools.

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Technical Data

Overseas tourbillon high jewellery 

Reference                               
6007V/210G-B955

Calibre                                    
2160
Developed and manufactured by Vacheron Constantin
Mechanical, self-winding, peripheral rotor
31 mm (13½’’’) diameter, 5.65 mm thick
Approximately 80 hours of power reserve
2.5 Hz (18,000 vibrations/hour)
188 components
30 jewels                   
Hallmark of Geneva certified timepieces                                                                                                                     

Indications                            
Hours, minutes, small seconds on tourbillon carriage (color screw) Tourbillon

Case                                       
18K white gold 
42.5 mm diameter, 10.39  thick
Bezel set with 60 baguette-cut diamonds, invisible setting
Soft iron casing ring ensuring anti-magnetic protection
Transparent sapphire crystal caseback
Water-resistant tested at a pressure of 5 bar (approx. 50 meters)             

Dial                                         
Translucent blue-lacquered, sunburst satin-finished base with velvet-finished flange
18K white gold hour-markers set with 9 baguette-cut diamonds, closed setting
18K white gold hours & minutes hands highlighted with blue LumiNova®

Bracelet                                           
18K white gold, half Maltese cross-shaped polished and satin-brushed links. secured by a 18K white gold triple-blade folding clasp with push-pieces and comfort-adjustment system.

Additional straps/clasp        
Blue calfskin leather strap with grey stiches
Blue rubber
Interchangeable 18K white gold pin buckle set with 16 baguette-cut diamonds, invisible setting

Total diamond-setting      
85 baguette-cut diamonds, for a total weight of approx. 3.61 carats (guaranteed minimum carats)