Beyond hours and minutes
A calendar watch showcases time beyond hours and minutes. These watches capture dates, months, and years through complete, annual, and perpetual calendars. Vacheron Constantin has even developed a secular perpetual calendar that considers exceptionally non-leap years.
How to measure the reality of time passing without manual adjustment?
The question has occupied the minds of watchmakers for over five centuries. In a Gregorian calendar, the day of the week is the least problematic element: from Monday to Sunday, its sequence is short and unchanging. For the date, it’s a different story: the months have 30 or 31 days, except for February, which has only 28. Add the leap years to the equation and you will understand the challenge for the watchmaker.
Our Calendar watches
View Vacheron Constantin’s collection of technically impressive and aesthetically stunning calendar watches.
Leap year or not?
Complete calendar watches are the gateway to this mechanical complexity: they measure the day of the week, month, and date. Certain models, such as the Fiftysix Complete Calendar, also display moon phases. These timepieces must be manually adjusted five times a year – in February, April, June, September, and November.
Annual calendar watches feature full or partial calendars that automatically account for months with 31 and 30 days. You must adjust these watches only once a year to account for the 28 days in February, except for leap year.
Perpetual Calendar Watches
Perpetual calendar watches require even fewer adjustments than annual calendars. These watches use a complex mechanical movement to capture the earth’s rotation around the sun. This mechanism adjusts to 28, 30, and 31-day months, and it accounts for leap years. Perpetual calendar watches only need adjustment at the end of the century or when a year is divisible by 400. In fact, they have gears that are only intended to be used once every 100 years.
Vacheron Constantin has created different displays for its calendar watches. The Overseas perpetual calendar watches display date, day, and month in three independent counters at 3, 9 and 12 o'clock.
Astronomical timekeeping
Collectors and enthusiasts admire calendar watches for their rich horological history. These timepieces feature innovative craftmanship pioneered by a commitment to astronomical timekeeping. Calendar watches exemplify tradition in the digital age where time is merely measured on screens. Wearers enjoy the convenience of all date and time measures displayed on their wrists.
Exquisite craftsmanship
Our calendar watches come with the Hallmark of Geneva, symbolizing the highest workmanship standards. Come experience our watches in person or contact our concierge for details on availability.
Collections
Our brand's philosophy is to meet expectations by designing timepieces as technically impressive as they are aesthetically stunning.
