Vacheron Constantin Malte watches

The Vacheron Constantin Malte is a collection of tonneau-shaped watches. Vacheron Constantin says the tonneau (barrel) shape has run through its designs since 1912, and it reinvented the Malte look in 2012. The Maltese cross, the company's symbol since 1880, returns in the line as the shape of the tourbillon carriage.

The Malte Tourbillon uses calibre 2795, developed and made by Vacheron Constantin: hand-wound, beating at 18,000 vibrations per hour, with a 45-hour power reserve and the Hallmark of Geneva. The seconds hand rides on the tourbillon carriage in the lower half of the dial, and the hour and minute hands move off-centre to make room for it. The case measures 38 by 48.2 mm and is water-resistant to 30 m. The Malte Small Model, 28.4 mm wide, runs on the hand-wound calibre 1400 AS with a 40-hour power reserve.

The tourbillon comes in pink gold, white gold or platinum, with a silver or slate dial, as a skeleton or openworked piece, and as Haute Joaillerie versions with gem-set bezels and diamond-paved dials. The platinum Malte Tourbillon Collection Excellence Platine (30130/000P-9876) and a Malte Tourbillon Haute Joaillerie (30630/000G-9899) are limited to 50 pieces each. The Malte Small Seconds (82230) is 36.7 mm and 9.25 mm thick, in pink or white gold with a silver or slate dial; the Malte Moon Phase shares those dimensions in pink gold. The Malte Small models carry gem-set bezels.

The reference tells them apart: 30130 is the tourbillon, 30135 the skeleton tourbillon, 30630 and 30635 the gem-set tourbillons, 82230 the Small Seconds. The letter before the dash usually gives the metal: R for pink gold, G for white gold, P for platinum.