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VACHERON & CONSTANTIN
18K Dress Watch “Corne de Vache” lugs
circa 1948
SOLD · NO LONGER AVAILABLE
YEARc. 1948
CONDITIONGood
SKUgtv-042
QUICK LOOK
DIAL
- Silver dial with applied Arabic and Pyramid indices
- Original gold hands
MOVEMENT
- Manual-wind cal. 458
CASE
- 18k yellow gold with "Corne de Vache" lugs by Antoine Gerlach
- 31mm diameter without crown / 34mm with crown / 40mm lug-to-lug
BRACELET / STRAP
- Tan Leather strap with gold plated buckle
CONDITION NOTES
- Incredible vintage condition
- Dial: untouched and shows slight patina
- Case: very sharp and probably never polished. Hallmarks are very deep and not rubbed out
- Keeps good time. Service history is unknown.
COMPARABLES
Dealer 1
$7,575. Same reference, silver and not rarer salmon dial
Chrono 24
$8,008 plus delivery. No papers. No salmon dial
Chrono seller
$10,995. Same watch without the salmon dial.
THE STORY
A very handsome 1940s Vacheron & Constantin dress watch with beautiful and unique “Corne de vache”, the French for “cow horn”, lugs.
The case was made by Antoine Gerlach — the same Geneva specialist responsible for some of the most desirable cases of the era (eg. the venerable Patek Phillipe ref. 96). We know this from the Geneva Key hallmark stamped on the inside caseback with a No. 4. It measures at just over 31mm diameter without the crown, but with a 40mm lug-to-lug and a dome crown, it wears larger on the wrist. The case here is super sharp and seemingly unpolished even after all these years.
The silvered dial shows a subtle patina, with "azurage" subdial adding technique and detail. What’s unique about this example are the pyramid markers between 12, 9, 6 and 3. Inside is the manual-wind calibre 458.
This is an exceptionally well-made dress watch from a golden era of Geneva watchmaking.