Vacheron Constantin ref. 4870, Automatic Yellow Gold Dress Watch

Dealer description — Oliver & Clarke

Vacheron Constantin can trace its roots back to 1755 and along with only a handful of other brands, is credited as one of the oldest manufacturers of mechanical clocks, pocket-watches, and of course, watches. In fact, Vacheron enjoys the prestige as the oldest continually operating manufacturer that still operates today. Vacheron is also a member of what has become known as The Holy Trinity , along with Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet. All three of these manufactures have very different identities and focus areas within the industry, with VC generally regarded as the technical innovator. And despite a bevy of both technical and mechanical firsts, including the most complicated watch ever at the time of writing this, VC remains the lesser known name of the three in the broader watch community and certainly least understood. The piece that we have here, a Reference 4870, is a somewhat restrained offering by Vacheron standards of the era. Dating to circa the 1960s, this 18k yellow gold dress watch features what would likely have been considered a large case for the era, coming in at approximately 36mm in diameter. It has beautiful tapered lugs that curve downward and a 'stepped' bezel tying everything together. It even features a screw-down caseback, which results in an overall feel that is somewhat reminiscent on a Rolex Oyster Perpetual from the era. It comes to us in excellent overall condition, with a strong and symmetrical case that shows normal signs of wear throughout. The satin champagne dial features a lovely silvered chapter ring on the outside of the applied indices, with additional applied 'dot' indices. There is an applied yellow gold Vacheron Maltese cross at the 12 o'clock position, with simple black text under it and "Automatic" printed on the bottom half of the dial. This piece is simultaneously elevated and restrained. The small details on the dial and intricacies of the case require a closer look to really be appreciated, and lets be honest, that is exactly what Swiss watchmaking is all about.