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Lot Essay
The Ref. 43031 and its skeletonized sibling Ref. 43032 were conceived in the early 1980s and it is believed that their production run spanned 23 years.
The 1980s marked a significant turning point for the watchmaking industry, as it emerged from the turmoil of the Quartz Crisis. The crisis, which began in the 1970s, was largely due to the rise of quartz-powered watches, which were more accurate and cheaper to produce than their mechanical counterparts. This shift caused traditional Swiss watchmakers to face a serious challenge, as the market was flooded with affordable and reliable quartz options.
However, mechanical watches didn’t fade away entirely. Instead, some of the most prestigious watchmaking houses introduced timepieces that not only demonstrated superior craftsmanship but also embodied the complexity and artistry of traditional mechanical watchmaking.
Among the icons that helped reignite interest in high complications during this period were a trio of ultra-thin automatic perpetual calendars from the ‘Holy Trinity’, Vacheron Constantin’s Ref. 43031, the Audemars Piguet Ref. 5548, and the Patek Philippe Ref. 3940.
The present example features calendar indications in the French language and is offered with its original Certificate of Origin.
The 1980s marked a significant turning point for the watchmaking industry, as it emerged from the turmoil of the Quartz Crisis. The crisis, which began in the 1970s, was largely due to the rise of quartz-powered watches, which were more accurate and cheaper to produce than their mechanical counterparts. This shift caused traditional Swiss watchmakers to face a serious challenge, as the market was flooded with affordable and reliable quartz options.
However, mechanical watches didn’t fade away entirely. Instead, some of the most prestigious watchmaking houses introduced timepieces that not only demonstrated superior craftsmanship but also embodied the complexity and artistry of traditional mechanical watchmaking.
Among the icons that helped reignite interest in high complications during this period were a trio of ultra-thin automatic perpetual calendars from the ‘Holy Trinity’, Vacheron Constantin’s Ref. 43031, the Audemars Piguet Ref. 5548, and the Patek Philippe Ref. 3940.
The present example features calendar indications in the French language and is offered with its original Certificate of Origin.
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Lot 52
Sale 23924
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CASE NUMBER: 582'759, MOVEMENT NUMBER: 732'983
VACHERON CONSTANTIN, REF. 43031, A FINE AND RARE GOLD AUTOMATIC PERPETUAL CALENDAR WRISTWATCH
Estimate: USD 20,000 - 30,000
Bid amount
Buyer's premium
Estimated total cost exclusive of duties