In its 270th anniversary year, Vacheron Constantin presents Métiers d'Art - Tribute to the Quest for Time: a watch incorporating the new hand-wound Caliber 3670, capable of animating two retrograde arms in continuous or on-demand mode, flanking a highly accurate three-dimensional moon and a celestial chart in real time.
Alimited edition of only 20 pieces that weaves together decorative art, technical innovation and historical memory.
The gestures of time
In the contemporary watchmaking scene, few maisons manage to transform the telling of time into a true narrative language. Vacheron Constantin, with the Métiers d'Art - Tribute to the Quest for Time, does so through a dial that is no longer a simple measuring plane but a stage. In the center stands a gilded titanium figure, molded and patinated by hand, who opens and closes his arms to scan the hours and minutes on two retrograde arcs. It is a gesture reminiscent of the "Bras-en-l'Air" of the 1930s, pocket watches in which the time was revealed only upon request: here the concept is revisited with modern coherence, in a double register that allows the wearer to choose between "active" mode, where the arms follow the time continuously, or "standby," where the dial remains silent until the button at 10 o'clock is pressed. In this dialogue between visibility and absence, time becomes a gesture, a revelation, a theatricality. The watch thus becomes an object that not only measures but also interprets, capable of building an intimate relationship with the wearer.
Mechanical heart: the 3670 Caliber
Behind the setting works Calibre 3670, a hand-wound movement developed over three years and strong with four patent applications. With its 512 components and 55 jewels, it guarantees a six-day power reserve thanks to three barrels, while its 5 Hz frequency ensures the stability needed to trigger retrogrades with precision. Among the most notable innovations is the sequential double retrograde power reserve indicator: the first three days are signaled on an arc from 6 to 3, the last three from 3 to 0, with a synchronized jump to the transition. A second innovation is the regulator that coordinates the simultaneous jump of the two retrograde hands at the stroke of 12 o'clock, avoiding asymmetry. Finally, the three-dimensional moon-phase system, which integrates the moon's age indication, allows safe corrections at any time. This movement is not only a precision machine, but the basis for a stage language that combines technical rigor and expressive freedom, while maintaining the Poinçon de Genève seal as a guarantee of finish and reliability.
The astronomical dimension
If the front of the watch tells of gestures, the back is a sidereal journey. Through the sapphire crystal caseback, engraved and metallized, one can read the celestial chart of the Geneva sky on the founding date of the Maison, September 17, 1755. The constellations move in real time, with minimal deviation: a single day every 9,130 years. It is a poetic yet technical way to make tangible the link between the measurement of time and the motion of the stars.
On the same plane also reads the sidereal day display, which completes the astronomical palette of the clock. This choice to bring together an anthropomorphic choreography on the front and a cosmic representation on the back creates a rare narrative continuity: in front, time as a human gesture; behind, time as a universal law. It is a balance that speaks to Vacheron Constantin's tradition of celestial complications and astronomical models, a repertoire that is here updated and condensed into an object 43 millimeters in diameter and 13.58 in thickness.
The art of crafts
The Métiers d'Art - Tribute to the Quest for Time is not only a complex device, it is also a demonstration of decorative savoir-faire. The dial is crafted in several layers: a metallic sapphire crystal with a blue gradient serves as the sky and allows a glimpse of the star map, while a second layer of white gold with an opaline finish houses the retrograde scales, embellished with 27 yellow gold applied indexes.
The central figure, made of gold PVD-coated titanium, is sandblasted and patinated by hand, restoring tactile depth to the surface. The three-dimensional moon, also carved in titanium, is treated with two different shades to suggest the play of light that nature offers cyclically. Each element is designed to blend tradition and innovation: manual engravings coexist with laser processes, advanced metallization marries with classical workmanship. It is an aesthetic grammar that serves not only to amaze, but to strengthen the legibility and durability of the surfaces, transforming the dial into a work in continuous transformation.
Continuity and memory
The decision to take up the idea of "Bras-en-l'Air" shows how Vacheron Constantin knows how to reinterpret its archive in a contemporary key. In the 1930s, those figures that raised their arms to reveal the time were a poetic curiosity; today, integrated into a system that alternates between continuous and on-demand visibility, they become part of a broader philosophy: that of the freedom to interact with time.
Likewise, the movement takes up solutions seen in the past-such as the double retrograde for the power reserve that has already appeared in the Saint-Gervais-reworking them in a language consistent with today's research. This is a work of mechanical philology that does not simply quote, but builds new possibilities from a shared heritage. It is this continuity that gives meaning to the limited edition of 20 pieces: not exclusivity as an end in itself, but the desire to preserve and pass on knowledge, to create an object that becomes both a collection and a narrative.
Measurement and function
At 43 millimeters in diameter and a white gold case, the watch has proportions that communicate presence without falling into excess. A thickness of 13.58 millimeters accommodates the movement without compromising the elegance of the profile, while water resistance to 3 bar certifies its everyday sturdiness.
A blue alligator strap with gold stitching and a white gold folding clasp complete an ensemble that combines classicism and chromatic discretion. It is a watch that asks to be observed from both sides: in front, the dance of the arms and the changing moon; behind, the slowly shifting celestial vault. Every detail is designed to build a constant dialogue between the wearer and the mechanism, between gesture and cosmos, between past and present. Ultimately, this Métiers d'Art is not only a tribute to the pursuit of time, but a statement about the way time itself can be narrated: through symbols, movements, and a continuous tension between silence and revelation.
Essential Specifications
Caliber 3670, manual winding, 5 Hz, 512 components, 55 rubies, 144-hour power reserve; Poinçon de Genève.
Dual retrograde hours and minutes (active/standby), dual retrograde power reserve, 3D moon phase with moon age, celestial chart and sidereal day.
White gold case 43 × 13.58 mm, 3 bar; double sapphire dial; limited edition of 20 pieces.
