Editorial
The Patrimony Moonphase 41mm is Vacheron's clearest argument that a complication belongs in the collection only when it earns its place on the dial. The moon disc is astronomically accurate to a deviation of one day in 122 years, housed in the thinnest possible Patrimony case, and the whole thing runs on one of the movement industry's most respected ultra-thin automaticas. For a collector who wants a moonphase that doesn't announce itself, this is the benchmark.
Vacheron launched reference 47105 in 2019 as a 41mm extension of the Patrimony family, which had previously offered the moonphase only in the smaller, manual-wind Traditionnelle line. The caliber 1120 QP is the in-house perpetual-calendar derivative of the 1120 base movement, itself a descendant of the JLC 920 family developed in 1967 and used across AP, Patek, and Vacheron for decades. At 2.45mm thick, the 1120 remains one of the thinnest automatic movements in production.
The 47105/000R-9159 references the standard rose gold configuration with the ivory-toned dial; Vacheron has also offered the reference in platinum and white gold variants, though these are rarer in the secondary market. The 41mm diameter corrected a longstanding complaint that the earlier Patrimony moonphase read small on modern wrists.
The caliber 1120 QP is a delicate movement and service access matters more here than with simpler automaticas; insist on full service records and confirm the last date correction was performed properly, since mishandling the perpetual calendar correctors is a common amateur error that can bend levers. Examine the moon disc under magnification, as the realistic astronomical painting can show wear or fading on pre-owned examples that have been exposed to UV. The rose gold case is relatively soft and the thin lugs scratch easily; inspect the lug edges and case flanks carefully, because polishing removes the original anglage definition and cannot be fully restored.
Confirm the crown and pushers operate without resistance, since the QP module adds more corrector stems than a simple automatic and any stiffness is a service flag. Finally, verify the buckle is original; buckle swaps are common and a non-matching Vacheron deployant knocks value more than buyers expect.
