213 Vacheron Constantin Very Rare and Sought After, Quantieme Perpetuel Calendar, Automatic Wristwatch in Platinum, With Silver Dial and Platinum Bracelet, Reference 43 031/1
Estimate: €25,000 – 50,000
Sold (Premium)€27,300
Model: Perpetual Calendar
Reference: 43 031/1
Case Material: Platinum
Bracelet Material: Platinum
Year: 1990s
Movement: Automatic
Caliber: 1120/2 QP
Case N°: 565794
Movement N°: 709 128
Dimensions: 36 mm
Signed: Dial, Movement and Case
Vacheron Constantin, Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe and other brands produced some of their finest ultra thin perpetual during the 1980s, creating a wave of what’s now commonly referred to as the neo-vintage era with these particular watches being known as the ultra-thin. The reference 43 031, which is understood to have been in production for around two decades, was the quintessential perpetual calendar model from Vacheron Constantin. It is thought Vacheron Constantin produced less than 2300 of these perpetual calendars over 23 years, making it much rarer than the Audemars Piguet Ref. 5448/25657 and Patek Philippe ref. 3940 counterparts. The lot here offered is a very rare watch fully made in platinum, the rarest version of this model: platinum examples appear to be bright white consistently throughout late first series. This watch is part of the first series with the sigma signature around the Swiss print at six o’clock. The white dial is the only color available for the platinum configuration of the first series, after that Vacheron introduced the guillochè pattern for the second series. Built upon the ultra-thin Jaeger-LeCoultre 920 ébauche the Vacheron Constantin ref. 43 031 houses the caliber 1120/2 QP created with the help of with Dubois-Depraz, a complication specialist. As with the other ultra-thin automatic perpetuals from the Holy Trinity, Vacheron Constantin produced a small number of ref. 43 031 on bracelet, available in both yellow gold and platinum. The bracelet is fixed to the case and there are no lugs to interchange with a strap. This bracelet variant has only been seen, but not limited to, 1st series ref. 43 031.