Vacheron Constantin have focussed on the female of the species for this year’s SIHH collection, and some of the exquisite pieces have indeed proven to be more deadly than male, as in deadly impressive.

 The Patrimony Contemporaine watches embrace the present, while the Patrimony Traditionnelle models are more classic in style. Then there are the showstoppers, the Patrimony High Jewellery timepieces displaying the talents of some of the world’s most skillful jewellers.

 Patrimony Contemporaine Lady gold bracelet

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 The first crown is an opaline silver-toned dial framed by a bezel circled with round diamonds. The original, diamond-set minutes scale is another feature that ties the watch to the spirit of the times. The fine applied hour markers and slender hands for the hours and minutes are curved to follow the external curve of the dial.

The central seconds hand sweeps over diamonds and gold while the date display at 6 o'clock sets the finishing touch to a demonstration of harmony and balance. The pink gold bracelet features links that gently hold the wrist. The case’s display back provides a view of the mechanical self-winding calibre 2450 movement that was developed and built in Vacheron Constantin’s workshops.

 The second version, paved with almost 800 diamonds, pays a further tribute to the Maison’s expertise in jewellery. The gems take over the entire surface of the dial and invade the bezel and the outside of the bracelet. The proprietary calibre 2460 shows off its exceptional workmanship through the display back.

 These two Patrimony Contemporaine models comply with the new requirements of the Hallmark of Geneva (Poinçon de Genève). Institutionalised by the parliament of the Republic and Canton of Geneva in 1886, the hallmark is an umbrella guarantee of provenance, workmanship, durability and skill. Once independent, this unmatched label of quality was thoroughly overhauled in 2011.

The certification no longer applies to just the movement, but now to the watch as a whole. This is a major milestone for this hallmark of authenticity that has long had Vacheron Constantin’s support in its endeavour to meet the real expectations of ever more discerning customers.

 Patrimony Traditionnelle Lady manual-winding

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Cut from pink or white gold, the slender case of the new Patrimony Traditionnelle for women is in a new 33mm case. A bezel set with 54 round-cut diamonds provides the illumination for the style markers of this collection: the minute track painted in brown or grey, applied hour markers and Dauphine hands made from solid gold circling over an opaline silver-toned dial. The strap is made of Alligator mississippiensis, in midnight blue or taupe. The high-grade mechanical manual-winding movement, calibre 1400, bears the Hallmark of Geneva. The flat surfaces are adorned with Côtes de Genève (Geneva stripes) and the sharp edges chamfered and polished, even on the heads and slots of each screw.

Patrimony Traditionnelle High Jewellery

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 This glittering 35mm diameter watch stages an extraordinary spectacle of light. A dazzling 16.2-carat flooring of claw-set baguette diamonds makes time go on forever. This model also comes in a 40mm dial.

 Case, dial and clasp: not a speck of white gold is unpaved by diamonds. The round-cut stones radiate from the centre of the face in increasing circles to cover its entire surface.

The watch is pwered by a calibre 1400 mechanical manual winding movement visible through the sapphire-crystal caseback. The finish of this movement is finished entirely by hand following a tradition passed down through the generations since 1755 and according to the most exacting rules of the art of watchmaking. The flat surfaces are adorned with Côtes de Genève and the sharp edges chamfered and polished, even on the heads and slots of each screw.