Guardians of Time: Inside Vacheron Constantin’s First Concours d’Élégance Horlogère
An unprecedented competition celebrating horological heritage, craftsmanship, and community, featuring rare Vacheron Constantin pocket and wristwatches, invites collectors worldwide to participate in a historic showcase.
By Sébastien Aeberli
Design, Content & Social Media
For the first time in watchmaking history, a Concours d’Élégance format – long associated with the world’s most prestigious vintage automobiles – is applied to haute horlogerie. Vacheron Constantin, at the invitation of Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo, introduces the Vacheron Constantin Concours d’Élégance Horlogère, a global competition dedicated exclusively to timepieces.
Conceived as a tribute to 270 years of uninterrupted watchmaking excellence, the initiative honors both the technical and aesthetic achievements that define the Maison and celebrates the collectors who preserve and transmit its legacy.
Open to enthusiasts and collectors worldwide who own historic Vacheron Constantin pocket watches or wristwatches, the Concours creates a new cultural platform for dialogue, scholarship, and appreciation. More than a competition, it recognizes the essential role collectors play as custodians of horological heritage, fostering deeper engagement between the Maison, the auction world, and the broader watch community.
With registration open now until April 30th, seven prizes will be awarded in Geneva in November 2026, marking a milestone moment for fine watchmaking.
An Inaugural Edition in the Industry
Open to Vacheron Constantin pocket watches and wristwatches produced between 1755 and 1999, encompassing the full breadth of the Maison’s creative history, the Vacheron Constantin Concours d’Élégance Horlogère stands as a genuine first within the watch industry. Inspired by the spirit of automotive Concours events, this competition is not about financial valuations or even the mechanical complexity of the entries. Instead, it shifts focus toward a more nuanced appreciation of historical significance, craftsmanship, rarity, and aesthetic impact.
Participants are invited to present their timepieces not only as collectible objects but also as cultural artifacts with stories shaped by centuries of innovation and refinement. In fact, collectors are encouraged to submit detailed documentation, imagery, and personal narratives, allowing each watch to be understood within its historical, technical, and emotional context.
Through this approach, the Concours seeks to illuminate the diversity of Vacheron Constantin’s production while encouraging meaningful exchanges among collectors, scholars, and industry experts.
A Tribute to Heritage and the Quest for Horological Excellence
At its core, the Concours d’Élégance Horlogère celebrates watchmaking as a union of technical mastery and artistic expression. By excluding quartz watches, clocks, and pieces that have undergone major modifications, the competition preserves the integrity of original craftsmanship and ensures that every entry remains faithful to the Maison’s historical standards. Each watch is evaluated not simply as a mechanism, but as the product of a broader cultural and creative legacy.
The jury will apply a holistic evaluation framework that reflects the many dimensions of haute horlogerie. Moreover, authenticity, elegance, rarity, provenance, state of preservation, and historical impact will also be assessed alongside technical complexity and métiers d’art.
Particular attention will also be given to the emotional dimension, acknowledging the personal bonds and stories that elevate a timepiece beyond its material value. In doing so, the Concours underscores the idea that horological excellence resides as much in meaning and transmission as it does in mechanics.
Seven Distinguished Categories
Structured around seven distinct categories, each submitted watch may compete in only one category, as chosen by its owner. These categories reflect a defining pillar of the Maison’s identity:
1. Chiming Mechanism: Watches equipped with minute repeaters, quarter repeaters, half-quarter repeaters, or grande sonnerie mechanisms.
2. Chronographs: Timepieces with two- or three-counter chronographs, single pushers, or split-seconds mechanisms.
3. Astronomical Complications: Watches with astronomical complications, including triple calendars, complete calendars, or perpetual calendars in pocket or wristwatches.
4. Multiple Complications: Timepieces combining at least two complications, such as tourbillons, repeaters, chronographs, or celestial displays.
5. Chronomètre Royal: Watches that have been awarded the official “Chronomètre Royal” designation from 1907 onward.
6. Métiers d’Art: These pieces feature decorative crafts such as engraving, enameling, gem-setting, guilloché, and related artisanal techniques (excluding skeleton watches).
7. Design: Watches distinguished by signature design elements, such as retrograde displays, jumping hours, world times, and more.
These categories celebrate horological excellence across technical, artistic, and functional dimensions, acknowledging iconic historical achievements and inspiring design innovations that have shaped the Maison’s legacy.
A Heritage Recognition Under an Expert International Jury
Ensuring the rigor and credibility of the Concours is an exceptional international jury co-chaired by Aurel Bacs, Senior Consultant at Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo, and Christian Selmoni, Director of Style and Heritage at Vacheron Constantin.
The panel brings together watchmakers, historians, journalists, designers, collectors, and key figures from the watch industry, guaranteeing a cross-disciplinary perspective that balances scholarship, technical expertise, and cultural insight.
Jurors such as Yasmine AlShathry, Felix Baumgartner, Benjamin Clymer, Nicholas Foulkes, Auro Montanari, Wei Koh, and others contribute decades of experience and independent judgment. Their collective expertise ensures that each timepiece is assessed not only for its mechanical merit but also for its place within the broader narrative of horological history.
Geneva, Celebration, and the Collector Community
The awards ceremony will take place in Geneva on November 10th, 2026, following the Phillips autumn auctions. The prizes will be presented as trophies, without financial compensation, reinforcing that the Concours is rooted in prestige, recognition, and cultural value rather than monetary rewards.
By uniting collectors, scholars, and enthusiasts, the Vacheron Constantin Concours d’Élégance Horlogère strengthens connections across the global watch community and honors the enduring legacy of the world’s oldest watch manufacture in continuous production.
For more information, please visit the Vacheron Constantin website.