842Σ︎
Vacheron Constantin
Ref. 43050/000J-8807
Mercator, Macau, No. 1
A fresh-to-the-market, very rare and attractive limited edition yellow gold wristwatch with retrograde hours and minutes, polychrome champlevé enamel dial depicting Southeast China and Macau and warranty, numbered 1 of a limited edition of 8 pieces, made to commemorate the Handover of Macau on 20 December 1999
Full-Cataloguing
- Made to commemorate the Macau Handover in December 1999
- Numbered 1 of 8 pieces only
- Dial first time seen on the auction market
- Offered in excellent condition with warm patina and its original paperwork
Unveiled at the Macau Military Club in July 1999, it was made to commemorate the handover of Macau on 20th December 1999. The present watch is extremely rare, in which this is the first time a model with this version of map on the dial has been seen on the auction market. Only 8 pieces are in 18K yellow gold, and this particular watch is numbered 1. A few years before the release, Vacheron Constantin also introduced a limited edition of 30 pieces for the Hong Kong Handover in 1997, thus, the Macau Mercator is even rarer in quantity.
The watch is fitted with a champlevé enamel dial inspired by Gerardus Mercator map of China, featuring a simpler depiction of the South China region marked with major ports like Macau, Chincheo (modern day Fujian region) in 16th century Portuguese naming fashion.
Offered in excellent condition with its original paperwork, the watch has developed a nice warm patina, truly a extremely remarkable specimen. This timepiece is not only a commemorative piece celebrating the Macau handover, but also a combination of Renaissance cartography with fine Swiss watchmaking and micromechanical innovation.
Vacheron Constantin
Swiss | 1755The world's oldest watch brand in continuous operation since its founding in 1755, Vacheron Constantin was the first watch company to manufacture movements with interchangeable parts beginning in 1839. Vacheron's watches are admired for their Latin-influenced case designs, well-balanced proportions and exquisitely finished movements of the highest quality. The Geneva-based manufacturer is known for their highly complicated masterpieces, including the King Farouk Grand Complication made in 1935, the Tour de l'Ile that was the most complicated serially produced wristwatch when introduced in 2005 and the 57260 — the world’s most complicated watch — made in 2015.
Key vintage models include minute repeating wristwatches such as the references 4261, chronographs such as the references 4178 and 6087 and the oversized Cioccolotone models such as ref. 4737. Collectors also appreciate Vacheron's Chronometer Royal pocket and wristwatches, as well as the '222,' the brand's first luxury sports watch produced from 1977 through 1984.