Vacheron Constantin is set to stage the world’s first Concours d’Élégance dedicated to timepieces, launched at the invitation of Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo. Open to collectors and enthusiasts worldwide who own Vacheron Constantin pocket watches or wristwatches, the inaugural Vacheron Constantin Concours d’Élégance Horlogère will take place in Geneva on November 10, 2026, where seven prizes will be awarded by an international jury of experts.

It is an ambitious idea, but one that feels especially apt for a maison such as Vacheron Constantin. Coming on the heels of its 270th anniversary celebrations, it extends the conversation around preservation, scholarship and connoisseurship, while also placing the focus on the collectors who have acted as guardians of the brand’s history and expertise across generations. In that sense, this Concours d’Élégance is not merely an event built around rarity or market interest, but rather a tribute to the people and the pieces that have carried the maison’s legacy forward.

Co-chaired by Aurel Bacs, Senior Consultant at Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo, and Christian Selmoni, Director of Style & Heritage at Vacheron Constantin, it signals a notable meeting point between brand heritage and the auction world. Phillips’ involvement brings authority in the appraisal and presentation of important historical timepieces, while Vacheron Constantin contributes one of the deepest and most varied collections in watchmaking. Together, they should make for a particularly rich field of entries.

The concours is open to owners of Vacheron Constantin pocket watches and wristwatches launched between 1755 and 1999 — excluding quartz watches, clocks and pieces that have undergone major modifications. Submitted timepieces will be judged according to nine different criteria, which include authenticity, elegance, rarity, impact on the history of Vacheron Constantin and/or watchmaking more broadly, provenance, technicality, métiers d’art, state of preservation and emotional dimension.

Seven Categories for a 270-Year Legacy

Entrant timepieces can only be submitted into one of seven categories, each of which reflects a different facet of Vacheron Constantin’s output.

The first three categories include Chiming Mechanism, Chronographs, and Astronomical Complications.

The first is Chiming Mechanism, covering pocket watches and wristwatches equipped exclusively with a minute repeater, quarter repeater, half-quarter repeater or grande sonnerie. The Chronograph category follows, encompassing two- or three-counter chronographs, monopushers and split seconds watches. Then comes Astronomical Complications, dedicated to watches with triple calendar, complete calendar or perpetual calendar functions.

The others cover Multiple Complications, Chronomètre Royal, Métiers d’Art and Design.

The fourth category, Multiple Complications, is likely to yield some of the most fascinating entries, as it is reserved for watches combining at least two major complications such as a tourbillon, repeater, chronograph, split seconds, calendar or sky chart. Chronomètre Royal directly taps into one of the maison’s historically important lines, focusing on pieces bearing the official designation introduced from 1907 onward. Métiers d’Art will celebrate watches distinguished by engraving, enameling, gem-setting, guilloché and other decorative crafts. Lastly, Design honors pieces whose signature lies in the case architecture or display, from retrograde indications to jumping hours and world time.

That spread of categories says much about why this concours matters; Vacheron Constantin’s heritage is broad and is not confined to one era or one complication family. Across 270 years, they have built an extraordinary watchmaking language that spans formal elegance, technical virtuosity and decorative artistry. This competition will likely surface not just important watches, but genuinely surprising ones that remind us how expansive Vacheron Constantin’s back catalog really is.

The jury, too, reflects the scope of the undertaking. Alongside Bacs and Selmoni, the panel brings together watchmakers, designers, historians, journalists, authors, collectors, advisors and other key industry figures in what Vacheron Constantin describes as a cross-disciplinary approach. Among them is Wei Koh, founder of Revolution, whose longstanding presence in watch media brings an informed perspective to the judging panel.

Registrations for the Vacheron Constantin Concours d’Élégance Horlogère are now open until April 30, 2026, online and through Vacheron Constantin boutiques.