Visiting the workshops of a watchmaking industry is an exciting experience for any watch enthusiast but visiting the world’s oldest watch Manufacture in uninterrupted activity since 1755 is much more. It is a journey in the history of Haute Horlogerie which also offers a glance to where it is headed in the future.
Vacheron Constantin has three main activity sites: the Maison in Geneva downtown, the workshops in the Vallee de Joux, 50 kilometres north of Geneva, and the international headquarters in Plain-les-Ouates, a municipality in the Canton of Geneva.
Our visit started from the Maison Vacheron Constantin in Geneva, at Quai de l'Ile / Rue des Moulins. Once the headquarter of the Maison, today the building hosts museum and boutique.
On the first floor, the Vacheron Constantin Heritage Center offers visitors with the possibility to view tools and watches from 1755 to the present day, admiring master-craftsmen as they restore antique watches, leaf through the comprehensive Vacheron Constantin library or watch detailed video footage of many of the artisanal techniques and master crafts used in the production of Vacheron Constantin watches.
On ground floor, the boutique showcases the current collections enabling one to appreciate the evolution of the Vacheron Constantin timepieces from the origins up until the 21st century. The interior design is a beautiful mix of modern elements with natural materials like wood, bronze and leather.
The Maison Vacheron Constantin holds a central and special place in the history of the brand since 1875. Commissioned by Jean-François Constantin, the building was the work of architect Jacques Elysée Goss, who had already designed the Grand Théâtre de Genève. In 1901, Vacheron Constantin began setting up its museum there, before inaugurating the boutique on the ground floor in August 1906.
Before moving to Rue des Moulins, the old manufacture occupied various locations in downtown Geneva. The first watchmaking workshop was opened by Jean-Marc Vacheron in 1755 in the Saint-Gervais district. It is simply fascinating to see the incorporation act of the company signed by founder Jean-Marc Vacheron.
In 1843 - 24 years after François Constantin, a seasoned businessman and a peerless salesman, had joined the heirs of Jean-Marc Vacheron - the now called Vacheron et Constantin Maison established its headquarter in the Tour de l’Ile, the remains of an ancient 13th century fortified palace, today a town landmark.
At the Maison Vacheron Constantin there are several old machines used by watchmakers including a device called pantograph that was used for the centering and the drilling of holes in the bridges and plates of watch movements allowing watchmakers to create perfectly identical copies of components. The pantograph made possible the interchangeability of parts on watches fitted with the same calibre.
This machine, like many others, was invented by technical director Georges-Auguste Leschot in 1839. Leschot was, without doubts, a key person in the history of Vacheron Constantin and watchmaking in general.
The visit to the Maison Vacheron Constantin was fascinating but to fully understand the manufacturing process of modern Vacheron Constantin timepieces we had to drive north of Geneva. Click here to transfer to the workshops in Le Brassus.
Vacheron Constantin has three main activity sites: the Maison in Geneva downtown, the workshops in the Vallee de Joux, 50 kilometres north of Geneva, and the international headquarters in Plain-les-Ouates, a municipality in the Canton of Geneva.
Our visit started from the Maison Vacheron Constantin in Geneva, at Quai de l'Ile / Rue des Moulins. Once the headquarter of the Maison, today the building hosts museum and boutique.
On the first floor, the Vacheron Constantin Heritage Center offers visitors with the possibility to view tools and watches from 1755 to the present day, admiring master-craftsmen as they restore antique watches, leaf through the comprehensive Vacheron Constantin library or watch detailed video footage of many of the artisanal techniques and master crafts used in the production of Vacheron Constantin watches.
Control tool at 1/1000th of millimetre - beginning of XIX century
A magnificent grande complication pocket watch - beginning of XIX century
An Art Deco pocket watch created from rock crystal with skeleton movement in pink gold, platinum bezel, hands in platinum and diamonds - 1927
In 1843 - 24 years after François Constantin, a seasoned businessman and a peerless salesman, had joined the heirs of Jean-Marc Vacheron - the now called Vacheron et Constantin Maison established its headquarter in the Tour de l’Ile, the remains of an ancient 13th century fortified palace, today a town landmark.
At the Maison Vacheron Constantin there are several old machines used by watchmakers including a device called pantograph that was used for the centering and the drilling of holes in the bridges and plates of watch movements allowing watchmakers to create perfectly identical copies of components. The pantograph made possible the interchangeability of parts on watches fitted with the same calibre.
This machine, like many others, was invented by technical director Georges-Auguste Leschot in 1839. Leschot was, without doubts, a key person in the history of Vacheron Constantin and watchmaking in general.
The visit to the Maison Vacheron Constantin was fascinating but to fully understand the manufacturing process of modern Vacheron Constantin timepieces we had to drive north of Geneva. Click here to transfer to the workshops in Le Brassus.
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