The arrival of a new version of the ‘222’ steel-cased sports watch to kick-off this year’s 270th anniversary of Vacheron Constantin set us wondering how much original, 1970s versions were selling for when the brand marked its quarter-millennium 20 years ago.
Finding out should have been a simple matter of dragging-out the Antiquorum catalogue for the maker’s thematic auction of April 3, 2005 and checking the sold prices for all the 222s that were surely among the age-appropriate 250 lots.
Except there were no 222s. Not a single one, despite there being plenty of examples of other benchmark vintage Vacheron wrist watches, such as the curved-cushion ‘Cioccolatone’, the 6087 ‘Cornes de Vache’ chronograph, the rectangular ‘Lips’ and the square-cased ‘TV Watch’ to name but a few.
The lack of 222 inclusion in a sale intended to celebrate Vacheron Constantin’s milestone creations was telling – because it showed how, until recently, not many people cared about a watch that’s now being bracketed alongside the Patek Philippe Nautilus, the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and the IWC Ingenieur as a blue-chip ‘70s classic.
If talk did turn to the 222 a few years ago, it didn’t usually provoke much comment other than for the design to be incorrectly attributed to Gerald Genta on the basis that he penned the Nautilus, the Royal Oak and the Ingenieur SL – so, as de facto ‘inventor’ of the integrated steel sports watch, he must, surely, have conceived the 222.
The misunderstanding was properly corrected three years ago when Vacheron wowed the crowds and stole the show at Watches and Wonders by introducing an all-new version of the yellow gold 222 with integrated gold bracelet into its ‘Historiques’ collection.
Although there were plenty of upgrades – a new, calibre 2455/2 movement, a sapphire case back, a superbly improved bracelet and Super-Luminova ‘lume’ being the main ones – the 2022 watch was a dead ringer for the 1977 version.
It inevitably sent interest in originals soaring, not least because a limited number of new gold models were available – and because the £53,500 ticket price was beyond many enthusiast’s means. (Three years later, by the way, that’s risen to £71,000…..)
“If only we could have a 222 steel” became a common refrain.
Well, now you can – but, despite not being made from a ‘noble metal’, it will still set you back a punchy £30,800.
For your money you get the same 2455/2 calibre and the same 37mm ‘Jumbo’ case as the gold watch, a blue dial and a steel bracelet that’s almost as delectable as its 18 carat counterpart..
Thanks to the modern 4 Hz movement the Historiques 222s should be more accurate than the 2.75 Hz originals and, at 40 hours, have a longer power reserve, too. As with the gold version, the date window has also been shifted slightly inwards to prevent it encroaching on the minute track.
With the steel-case Nautilus 5711 no longer being available (although we’re ‘watching this space’ until next year’s 50th anniversary), the Royal Oak self-winding now seeming a bit obvious and the current Ingenieur not being quite true to the original, the latest 222 might just be the new thinking person’s choice in the luxury, vintage-inspired steel sports watch sector.
Appropriately enough, the original 222 was launched to mark the 222nd anniversary of Vacheron’s founding – but appears to have been ‘just another job’ for its designer Jörg Hysek.
Born in East Berlin in May 1953, Hysek and his family moved to Geneva when he was seven – shortly before the building of the Berlin wall. He studied micromechanics for two years at the Bienne technical Institute, and then enrolled at the Vocational School for Watchmakers in Pforzheim. However, he subsequently headed to art college, first in Germany and afterwards at London’s prestigious Royal Academy of Art.
Back in Switzerland, he worked as a Rolex designer for four years before quitting to establish his own business, Hysek Styling – and one of his first clients was Vacheron.
The noble ‘maison’ was looking for an unusual watch with which to mark its equally unusual anniversary. Then, like now, it was the oldest watch house to have remained in continuous production.
But this wasn’t to be Vacheron’s first attempt at what would be termed a ‘sports elegance’ bracelet watch.
Back in 1975 it had created the Reference 2215 Chronometer Royal, an odd-looking rectangular watch with scalloped corners to the case and a soft-edged, octagonal bezel.
An commercial flop, the 2215 ceased production in 1977, prompting an urgent need to replace it with something more commercial – just as Hysek was starting out on his career as a pen for hire.
“Jörg Hysek just walked in with his drawings and sold them to us. The watches were then developed in-house, with outside specialists being commissioned to make various components,” explains Christian Selmoni, Vacheron Constantin’s style and heritage director.
The 1977 watch was powered by a Calibre 1120 movement – the reference Vacheron applied after tweaking the very same, ultra-thin Jaeger-LeCoultre 920 mechanism that was used in both the Nautilus and the Royal Oak.
At the time, Hysek’s case design – comprising a tonneau base with that distinctive, notched bezel – was as unconventional as its Patek and Audemars counterparts
The dials, of course, were top quality. Available in a choice of blue grey or charcoal grey – echoes of the Nautilus again – they were made, Selmoni believes, by Geneva-based Stern Créations.
Meanwhile, the key to the whole thing, the integrated bracelet, was another local product from the best in the business: Gay Frères of 12, Glacis-de-Rive, the metalwork specialist that grew from its 19th century roots as a maker of pocket watch chains to become the most respected bracelet manufacturer in the world.
Launched at the Basel fair in 1977, the 222 was sold in a set with a money clip that matched the design of the notched bezel which, along with the gold Maltese cross set into the bottom right corner of the brushed metal case, must have made the watch a real, stand-out piece.
Once production was underway, the 222 could be had in the two-hand ‘jumbo’ size of 37mm, with a 34mm ‘mid-size’ case and three hands or as a 24mm, quartz-powered woman’s model.
The availability of steel, yellow gold, white gold and two-tone finishes across all models also broadened the range, and there were also a few in white gold with diamond set bezels or diamonds set into the bracelet links.
It is commonly stated that just 500 examples of the 222 were produced during its eight-year production life but, according to factory records, there were more than 1,300 ladies versions, around 1,000 mid-size models and approximately 700 ‘jumbos’ = with the rarest of the rare being the latter in white gold.
There were also a few examples with silver or, even scarcer, white dials.
Compared with the 3,300 examples of the ‘70s reference 3700/1 Nautilus produced, the original 222 was considerably less common, even when mid-size and jumbo production is combined.
“For years, we heard hardly anything about the 222,” said Selmoni “but, after we re-launched it in gold, more and more people got in touch with original examples.”
The thing that has really surprised Selmoni about the 222, however, is that it wasn’t just a cushion-cased watch with a round dial – but a square-cased watch, too.
“In researching the 222, I was amazed to discover that there was this second version that was nothing to do with Jörg Hysek, but was entirely the idea of the management. It had a square case with flat corners, a square dial and, again, a fully integrated bracelet.”
But that, as they say, is a whole other story…
What, meanwhile does the future hold in store for the revived 222 in steel?
To get an insight, WatchPro asked Danny Shahid of Mayfair-based pre-owned dealer Diamond Watch London.
“I think it’s a cool watch, but the price seems very high – you can buy a lot of watch for that money. The concept is great, but the price seems too strong for me for a steel case. It should be nearer 20k.
“That said, I fell 100 per cent that it some people will see it as new buy alternative to a Nautilus 5711, which you can’t now get, or to a steel Royal Oak. The 222 strikes me as being a lot more interesting, and it’s a fact that watch enthusiasts often like to wear something different from everyone else.
“Despite the high retail price, I still think the steel 222 will command a significant premium on the pre-owned market, because it’s going to be difficult to get,” adds Shahid.
“I fact, I’m expecting to buy one or two in within the next week or so. I’ll try them at around £60,000 and see what happens.”