WORLD’S OLDEST WATCH-MAKER AUCTIONS 250 YEARS OF HISTORY 
已有250年历史的世界最古老的制表商拍卖会
Vacheron Constantin celebrates its quarter millennium with global exhibition and celebrity auction
江诗丹顿（Vacheron Constantin）庆祝成立250周年，同时举办有知名人士参加的全球巡展拍卖会

Geneva: 3rd April 2005 
日内瓦：2005年4月3日

Some of the most exceptional timepieces ever made will be auctioned in Geneva on Sunday, with individual price tags expected to reach more than a million dollars.  
周日，一些有史以来最杰出的手表将在日内瓦进行拍卖，单只手表的价格有望超过100万美元。

 

The auction will mark the 250th anniversary of Vacheron Constantin, the world’s oldest continuous watchmaker, which was founded in Geneva in 1755.  
本次拍卖会旨在纪念江诗丹顿的250周年庆典。1755年，江诗丹顿在瑞士日内瓦成立，是世界上历史最悠久并且从未间断过生产的表厂。

 

The timepieces up for sale cover the entire history of the company - from 18th century pocket watches to modern limited editions created especially for the anniversary. 
本次拍卖的手表包括该公司各个历史时期的产品 － 从18世纪的怀表到专为本次庆典活动生产的限量版时尚手表。

 

Those limited editions will include the Tour de l’ile – seven 18-carat gold wristwatches that the company claim are the most complex ever produced in a limited series.  The watches have a double dial containing 16 complications – essentially displays of information from the time to the phases of the moon and sunrise/sunset. 
Tour de l’ile是限量版手表中的一个系列。该系列仅生产了7只18克拉金质腕表，江诗丹顿公司表示这些表是其制造出的最为复杂的限量版手表。这些手表具有双表盘，含有16种复杂的显示 － 从时间一直到月相和日出日落。

 

The auction collection has been travelling the world for the past 5 weeks as Vacheron Constantin set up displays in New York, Tokyo, Taipei, Hong Kong and Milan.  It has been viewed by celebrities, senior businessmen and collectors in each location and it’s hoped that many will arrive for the auction in Geneva.
过去5周内，这些供拍卖的藏品一直在环游世界。江诗丹顿先后在纽约、东京、台北、香港及米兰举办了展览。来参观展览的有来自各个展地的知名人士、资深商人以及收藏家，他们中会有许多人可能都会参加在日内瓦举行的拍卖会。

 

The highlight of that auction will be the King Fouad I pocket watch which was given in 1929 by the Swiss community in Egypt to the King, to mark his visit to Switzerland. It’s a remarkable 18K gold timepiece with silver decoration and the Egyptian Royal family’s coat of arms on the reverse.  It took three-and-a-half years to make and has a reserve price of one million US Dollars. 
该次拍卖会的亮点将是埃及国王Fouad一世的怀表，这只表是旅居埃及的瑞士人于1929年献给埃及国王的，以纪念他访问瑞士。这是一只非同寻常的18K金表，表身带有银饰，背面还有埃及皇族的盾徽。生产这只表耗时3年半的时间，其拍卖底价为100万美元。 

Over two-and-a-half centuries many historical figures have owned a Vacheron Constantin watch.  Modern clients include Nicole Kidman, Kirk Douglas, the Aga Khan and Queen Elizabeth II amongst several others.  
在这250年里，曾有许多历史名人拥有过江诗丹顿手表。现在的客户包括妮可·基德曼（Nicole Kidman）、柯克·道格拉斯（Kirk douglas）、Aga Khan以及英国女王伊丽莎白二世等等。

 

To complete the celebration in Geneva, the auction will be followed by a Gala dinner, which will be opened by the Swiss Minister of Economy Joseph Deiss and the CEO of Vacheron Constantin Claude-Daniel Proellochs. 
为了让这次在日内瓦举行的庆典活动更为完美，拍卖会后还将举行庆典晚宴。晚宴开幕式将由瑞士财务大臣Joseph Deiss和江诗丹顿首席执行官Claude-Daniel Proellochs共同主持。

 

The dinner will also mark the start of the 15th International Fine Watch Making Exhibition – the SIHH, Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie - in Geneva where some of the most exclusive  and prestigious timepieces will be on display.  The Exhibition is regarded as the premier fine watch making show in the world. 
该晚宴也标志着第15届国际高档钟表制造展 － SIHH（Salon International de la Haute Horlogeries）的开幕。本届展览将在日内瓦举行，届时一些最高级的名表将在展览上亮相。本项展览一直被公认为世界上最重要的高档钟表制造展。

 

For those who wish to view the auction as it takes place a live Internet broadcast will take place on www.antiquorum.com
对于那些希望即时观看本次拍卖会的人，www.antiquorum.com还将通过互联网为他们进行现场直播。

 

Notes to editors 
编者注解

 

Vacheron Constantin currently employs around 350 people around the world, including 255 in Switzerland. It runs two production sites with complementary activities: the new site in Plan-les-Ouates/Geneva, a contemporary Manufacture and international brand headquarters that have been operational since August 2004; and the other in the Vallée de Joux, which is home to the movement Research and Development unit and to the machining and decorating of the components in mechanical movements. Together, they produce a limited number of exceptional watches with high added value: some 15,000 per year, a figure that obviously favours quality over any other considerations. In addition to developing and crafting all its “complication” models, Vacheron Constantin also decorates all its proprietary movements: bevelling the bridges, drawing out the flanks with file strokes, and individually polishing the screws are all part of the operations consistently performed before the meticulous process of assembling the parts one by one.
江诗丹顿公司现在全世界拥有大约350名员工，其中瑞士有255名。该公司拥有两个制造基地，分别生产不同的零部件。新的生产基地位于日内瓦的Plan-les-Ouates区，该基地于2004年8月投入使用，包括一个现代化工厂及国际品牌总部；另一个基地位于瑞士的汝山谷(Vallée de Joux)，主要从事表芯的研发以及机械运动部件的加工和修饰。这两个基地共同生产一些带有高附加值的高档限量版手表：每年只精心制造15,000只，而且在质量上更是精益求精。除了开发和手工制作“复杂”的型号以外，江诗丹顿还对其专有的各种表芯进行修饰：横桥成斜角、侧面通过打磨加以延长、对螺丝进行逐个打磨，所有这些操作都确保了产品品质的稳定性。最后，装配人员再将这些部件一个个小心组装好。