Celebrating its historic relationship with China, Vacheron Constantin’s latest Métiers d’Art The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac creation pays tribute to the Goat, the eighth sign of the Chinese zodiac.

Vacheron Constantin continues to celebrate Chinese culture through its Métiers d’Art The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac collection with the introduction of two limited editions of 25 pieces dedicated to the Year of the Goat.
Housed in a 40mm case, the technically sophisticated and complex Calibre 2460 G4 is conceived with aesthetics in mind, giving the Maison’s métiers d’art artisans freedom of artistic expression. The sensual beauty of the dial comes from a combination of relief engraving, miniature painting, and grand feu enamelling, elevated by a case in either 950 platinum or 18K 5N pink gold.
In 2012, guided by a spirit of deep cultural exploration and openness to the world, Vacheron Constantin introduced an annual Métiers d’Art watch series inspired by the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac. Continuing the Maison’s long-standing tradition of creating watches that combine elements of Western and Eastern astrology, a second 12-year cycle began with the Year of the Snake in 2024, with two versions introduced each year.
The latest watches are dedicated to the Goat, the eighth of the 12 zodiac animals, which will follow the Horse for Lunar New Year in February 2027. With a strong presence in Chinese culture and art since ancient times, the goat carries a wealth of symbolic meanings, encompassing sensitivity and gentleness as well as loyalty, honesty, strength, and resilience, and especially auspiciousness and good fortune.

These new Métiers d’Art watches reinforce the deep relationship between the Maison and China, which dates back to the mid-19th century. Through its early presence in this market, Vacheron Constantin played a key role in fostering among the nobility of the imperial Chinese court a passion for intricately decorated watches and advanced watchmaking techniques, guided by a deep appreciation for fine craftsmanship and rare talent that continues to this day.
According to historical records, Vacheron Constantin sent 33 pairs of watches to Guangzhou in 1846, beginning a long and close relationship that included numerous commissions from Chinese officials. Often produced and sold in pairs, watches made for China were designed to withstand humidity and were decorated using engraving, enamelling, and gem-setting techniques.
Across generations, the Maison has continued to create watches influenced by Chinese culture. Recent examples include the Métiers d’Art Tribute to Traditional Symbols collection, a Traditionnelle Tourbillon watch honoring the Qilin, and Les Cabinotiers creations including the Le Temps Divin and Memorable Places series.
The cultural relationship between the Maison and China was further strengthened through its collaboration with the Educational Institute of the Palace Museum in Beijing, which began in 2024.

The 40mm cases of the Métiers d’Art The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac – Year of the Goat models house the in-house-designed and manufactured self-winding Calibre 2460 G4, featuring dragging displays for the hours and minutes and jumping displays for the day of the week and date through apertures.
Demonstrating the Manufacture’s expertise in designing movements specifically for artistic expression, the calibre was created to provide a broad “canvas” for the decorative arts. In place of traditional hands, a system of four discs displays the indications through apertures positioned around the perimeter of the dial. The dragging hour and minute indications are positioned in the upper part of the dial, while the jumping day and date indications appear below.

The self-winding movement comprises 237 components, arranged within a 31mm diameter and a thickness of 6.05mm. Through the sapphire crystal caseback, the openworked 22K yellow gold oscillating weight can be admired, featuring a polished Maltese cross.
The watch’s refined decorative motifs harmonize with the Haute Horlogerie finishing applied to the other components, including perlage, Côtes de Genève, hand-bevelled bridges, and hand-finished jewel sinks. To affirm the elegance of the movement’s architecture, the quality of its finishing, and its high technical merits, the Hallmark of Geneva is engraved on one of the bridges.

Reflecting Vacheron Constantin’s mission to preserve and develop traditional decorative arts, the dial of The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac – Year of the Goat explores a new aesthetic language through the combination of grand feu enamelling, miniature painting, and hand engraving.
The dial features a three-dimensional depiction of a goat standing majestically on a large rock, against an intricately hand-painted grand feu enamel background. The use of relief engraving for the raised motif creates visual depth and enhances the impression of the goat’s understated strength, while the subtle gradations of enamel color and finely rendered foliage give the background a dreamlike quality.

The goat and rock are sculpted from either 18K white or pink gold, depending on the case material, by a master engraver. Relief engraving is then used to create fine details such as the goat’s horns and coat.
Textures and contours are highlighted through a hand-colored finish, while variations in color are enhanced through enamel miniature painting used to render the different details. In total, creating this motif requires three days of meticulous work.
Two enamelling techniques are used to create the dial background: polychrome grand feu enamel with a subtle color gradient running from a lighter center toward slightly darker edges, and enamel miniature painting for the foliage details.
The colors are applied in multiple layers with an extremely fine brush before the dial is fired at temperatures above 800°C. This process is repeated several times, which is necessary to build up all the colors in the design and achieve the desired tones. The complex process requires two weeks of work.
Finally, the background colors of the indications shown through the four apertures are selected to harmonize with the enamelled details in each area of the dial.
The 25-piece edition in pink gold is paired with a dark brown alligator leather strap, while the 25-piece platinum edition comes with a dark blue alligator leather strap. Both use folding clasps crafted from the same metal as their respective cases.

Vacheron Constantin Welcomes the Year of the Goat With a Métiers d’Art Masterpiece

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