Launched in 1994 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the celebrated Flemish/German cartographer’s passing, Gerard Mercator (1512-1594), Vacheron Constantin’s Mercator was an incredibly avant-garde timepiece for its epoch and one of horology’s very first double retrograde indications in a wristwatch.

Directly inspired by the double retrograde hands of the Bras en l’Air models of the 30s, the Mercator is one of the timepieces from the 1990s that best represents Vacheron Constantin's ethos of the time: a mix of high horology and métiers d’art with a dash of audacity.

Originally launched as a limited edition featuring cloisonné enamel dials representing the Americas or Europe/Asia/Africa, the brand soon presented examples with engraved dials featuring the same maps. Housing the extra flat caliber 1120, modified for a bi-retrograde time indication, the hands progress divergently across two arc-shaped zones, one graduated from 1 to 12 hours and the other from 0 to 60 minutes. Each hand returns instantly to zero on exactly completing one half day and one hour respectively. The hands themselves are styled like compass legs, reminiscent of the early hand-held compasses such as the ones which Mercator used throughout his life.

The present Mercator with engraved dial (justly reminiscent of an old parchment) represents the map of Europe/Asia/Africa as drawn by Mercator. The present watch in overall excellent condition is offered by its original owner and is complete with its full set of accessories.