Until recently, Les Cabinotiers was a ‘secret society’, where a select band of collectors was given access to a set of unique and bespoke watches. Each piece showcases the finest of Vacheron Constantin’s watchmaking skills, combined with the most exquisite metier d’art techniques available, including enamelling, engraving and marquetry work.
But in the past couple of years, keen to share these rare timepieces with the wider world, a travelling exhibition has been created, allowing horology lovers unprecedented access to a curated selection of these masterpieces with price-tags stretching into hundreds-of-thousands of pounds.
Describing the watches, Vacheron Constantin’s chief marketing officer Laurent Perves says: “We call the collection ‘Les Cabinotiers’ as this is the name historically given to artisans who worked in small rooms or ‘cabinets’ in the attics of watch manufactures. All of the pieces in the collection are one-offs – some are made to the specifications of clients, others are creations from within Vacheron Constantin. For us, this is the pinnacle of fine watchmaking.”