Time Pieces
See also : Clocks Silverware OnlyWatch Patek Philippe Patek Philippe < 1950 Perpetual calendar World Time Rolex New watches
Chronology : 1902 1933 1968 2010-2019 2020 to now 2021
Chronology : 1902 1933 1968 2010-2019 2020 to now 2021
1902 The Rothschild Egg by Fabergé
2007 SOLD for £ 9M including premium by Christie's
narrated in 2020
Each imperial egg prepared by Fabergé had to bring an innovation. In 1900 the egg offered by Tsar Nicholas II to the Empress Maria Feodorovna was a clock. The surprise is an automaton cockerel that appears for striking the hours.
Fabergé is an entrepreneur who knows how to satisfy the richest customers around the world, eager to find the most sumptuous gifts for their wives. Two non-imperial variants from the cockerel egg are known, one made in 1902 for the French branch of the Rothschild family, the other in 1904 for a Russian nobleman.
The Rothschild egg was an engagement gift by Béatrice de Rothschild to Germaine Halphen who will become her sister-in-law in 1905. Stayed with that family, it surfaced in a sale by Christie's on November 28, 2007. It was sold for £ 9M including premium, lot 55. Please watch the post sale video shared by Russia Today.
This piece 27 cm high in closed position is made of solid silver enamelled in transparent pink on a guilloche background and weighs 3,645 g. To mark the hours, the lid opens to let rising a multicolored chantecler in enamelled gold set with small diamonds. For 15 seconds, the bird flaps its wings, sings while moving its head, opens and closes its beak and ends the movement by banging a bell before descending back to its original place.
This egg is dated, signed by Fabergé and stamped by the workmaster Perchin. A photo taken during its make features Perchin with his assistant Wigström who will succeed him in 1903.
Fabergé is an entrepreneur who knows how to satisfy the richest customers around the world, eager to find the most sumptuous gifts for their wives. Two non-imperial variants from the cockerel egg are known, one made in 1902 for the French branch of the Rothschild family, the other in 1904 for a Russian nobleman.
The Rothschild egg was an engagement gift by Béatrice de Rothschild to Germaine Halphen who will become her sister-in-law in 1905. Stayed with that family, it surfaced in a sale by Christie's on November 28, 2007. It was sold for £ 9M including premium, lot 55. Please watch the post sale video shared by Russia Today.
This piece 27 cm high in closed position is made of solid silver enamelled in transparent pink on a guilloche background and weighs 3,645 g. To mark the hours, the lid opens to let rising a multicolored chantecler in enamelled gold set with small diamonds. For 15 seconds, the bird flaps its wings, sings while moving its head, opens and closes its beak and ends the movement by banging a bell before descending back to its original place.
This egg is dated, signed by Fabergé and stamped by the workmaster Perchin. A photo taken during its make features Perchin with his assistant Wigström who will succeed him in 1903.
Surtout connu pour ses œufs, le légendaire joaillier #Fabergé a également été un pionnier dans le travail de l’email https://t.co/jX2LfcNu0D pic.twitter.com/w2yPxpTyd4
— Christie's Paris (@christiesparis) May 23, 2017
Quick trip down memory lane - Christie’s currently holds the #record for the most expensive #RussianWorkofArt sold in the category, the #Rothschild #Fabergé Egg which sold for US$18,576,214 in 2007: https://t.co/qF6ZxJv7RA pic.twitter.com/ONoxXplZcx
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) April 9, 2019
1933 Supercomplication for the Use of New York
2014 SOLD for CHF 23.2M including premium
Patek Philippe knew to listen to their wealthy private clients. The Geneva brand remains for that reason since over a century the pioneer of miniaturization accompanied by an increasing number of complications in pocket watches and later in wristwatches.
By 1900, the Palmer specimen was a pocket watch with minute repeater, months, days of the week, split-second chronograph, grande and petite sonnerie and the phases of the moon.
James Ward Packard, the car industrialist, was one of the most demanding customers of Patek Philippe. In 1916, he obtained a pocket watch with sixteen complications, and in 1927 he had a celestial chart added to nine other complications in a single watch.
When Packard died in 1928, the New York banker Henry Graves Jr. had already ordered the world's most complicated pocket watch, with 24 complications divided into two dials including the night time sky from New York City.
Completed in 1932, the Supercomplication is a unique piece for which Patek Philippe had mobilized their best specialists. The assembly of its 920 components in a case 74 mm in diameter and 36 mm thick is a technical feat that will remain unmatched until the era of computer-aided design.
The Supercomplication was delivered to Graves on 19 January 1933 for CHF 60K, nearly five times the price of the ultimate Packard watch. It was sold for $ 11M including premium by Sotheby's on December 2, 1999. It is for sale by Sotheby's in Geneva on November 11, lot 345.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's.
By 1900, the Palmer specimen was a pocket watch with minute repeater, months, days of the week, split-second chronograph, grande and petite sonnerie and the phases of the moon.
James Ward Packard, the car industrialist, was one of the most demanding customers of Patek Philippe. In 1916, he obtained a pocket watch with sixteen complications, and in 1927 he had a celestial chart added to nine other complications in a single watch.
When Packard died in 1928, the New York banker Henry Graves Jr. had already ordered the world's most complicated pocket watch, with 24 complications divided into two dials including the night time sky from New York City.
Completed in 1932, the Supercomplication is a unique piece for which Patek Philippe had mobilized their best specialists. The assembly of its 920 components in a case 74 mm in diameter and 36 mm thick is a technical feat that will remain unmatched until the era of computer-aided design.
The Supercomplication was delivered to Graves on 19 January 1933 for CHF 60K, nearly five times the price of the ultimate Packard watch. It was sold for $ 11M including premium by Sotheby's on December 2, 1999. It is for sale by Sotheby's in Geneva on November 11, lot 345.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's.
Patek Philippe Reference 1518
Intro
During the 1930s Patek Philippe masters all the complications and most of their combinations. The brand's effort to make new prototypes and to add new high-end references to its catalog is not interrupted by the war.
The reference 130, launched commercially in 1934, is a single-push chronograph using the calibre 13. It is equipped with two subsidiary dials, one indicating the seconds up to the minute and the other the minutes up to the half hour. Produced from 1940, the reference 1491 is a watch without chronograph with a more elegant design than the already classic Calatrava.
Released in 1941, the reference 1518 introduces commercially a tantalizing combination of complications. In production from 1941 to 1954, it is the first commercial wristwatch from any brand to offer altogether these two appealing complications which are the chronograph and the perpetual calendar, in addition to the moon phases.
The 1518 is ahead of its time and appeals the elite. 281 watches are built in this reference which is an average of 20 per year. The list of customers includes the kings of Egypt, Jordan and Romania and the boxing champion Sugar Ray Robinson, and also the all time top collector Henry Graves Jr.
Most 1518s are in yellow gold, plus an estimated 58 in pink gold. A pink gold example made in 1948 was sold for CHF 1.47M by Phillips on November 13, 2016, lot 196.
The reference 130, launched commercially in 1934, is a single-push chronograph using the calibre 13. It is equipped with two subsidiary dials, one indicating the seconds up to the minute and the other the minutes up to the half hour. Produced from 1940, the reference 1491 is a watch without chronograph with a more elegant design than the already classic Calatrava.
Released in 1941, the reference 1518 introduces commercially a tantalizing combination of complications. In production from 1941 to 1954, it is the first commercial wristwatch from any brand to offer altogether these two appealing complications which are the chronograph and the perpetual calendar, in addition to the moon phases.
The 1518 is ahead of its time and appeals the elite. 281 watches are built in this reference which is an average of 20 per year. The list of customers includes the kings of Egypt, Jordan and Romania and the boxing champion Sugar Ray Robinson, and also the all time top collector Henry Graves Jr.
Most 1518s are in yellow gold, plus an estimated 58 in pink gold. A pink gold example made in 1948 was sold for CHF 1.47M by Phillips on November 13, 2016, lot 196.
1
1943 Stainless Steel
2016 SOLD for CHF 11M by Phillips
Until the second world war and a little beyond, the use of stainless steel is exceptional in the high-end wristwatches made by Patek Philippe. Owners identify luxury with gold or platinum. Steel watches are produced on special request from customers who fear some wearing related to their own heavy use.
The 1518 in stainless steel are extremely rare : only four are known. This is not really surprising : we must indeed recognize some contradiction between the need for a perpetual calendar and the fear of wear.
The first two 1518 in stainless steel were manufactured in 1943 and sold together to a same customer in February of the next year. One of them remaining in an immaculate condition had probably been intended by him as a spare. It was sold for CHF 11M from a lower estimate of CHF 3M by Phillips on November 12, 2016, lot 38.
The 1518 in stainless steel are extremely rare : only four are known. This is not really surprising : we must indeed recognize some contradiction between the need for a perpetual calendar and the fear of wear.
The first two 1518 in stainless steel were manufactured in 1943 and sold together to a same customer in February of the next year. One of them remaining in an immaculate condition had probably been intended by him as a spare. It was sold for CHF 11M from a lower estimate of CHF 3M by Phillips on November 12, 2016, lot 38.
2
1948 Pink on Pink
2021 SOLD for $ 9.6M by Sotheby's
An immaculate one-owner Patek Philippe wristwatch reference 1518 was sold for $ 9.6M from a lower estimate of $ 1.2M by Sotheby's on December 9, 2021, lot 55.
This watch made in 1948 was sold in 1951 to a first cousin of King Farouk. Previously unknown, it was discovered as a completely original time capsule in a safety deposit box after the recent death of the prince. It is still accompanied by its presentation case, certificate of origin and operating instructions to adjust the calendar.
This 1518 is in the very rare pink on pink configuration, specially designed for a warm tone effect associating a pink dial to the 18k pink gold of the case. 13 other examples are known. Most of the other pink gold 1518s have a silvered dial.
This watch made in 1948 was sold in 1951 to a first cousin of King Farouk. Previously unknown, it was discovered as a completely original time capsule in a safety deposit box after the recent death of the prince. It is still accompanied by its presentation case, certificate of origin and operating instructions to adjust the calendar.
This 1518 is in the very rare pink on pink configuration, specially designed for a warm tone effect associating a pink dial to the 18k pink gold of the case. 13 other examples are known. Most of the other pink gold 1518s have a silvered dial.
1953-1954 Patek Philippe Reference 2523
2019 SOLD for HK$ 70M by Christie's
Patek Philippe began in 1937 to assemble World Time watches (Heures Universelles, HU) with the movement patented and supplied by Louis Cottier, without obtaining an exclusivity. A ring marked from 0 to 23 rotates counter clockwise in synchronisation with the hands. Another ring identifies about 40 cities or places. The time everywhere around the world is read directly by the position of these inscriptions in front of the rotating ring.
After the ephemeral 96 HU and 515 HU references used by Patek Philippe in the development phase, the reference 1415 HU released in 1939 marks a stabilization of that offer. 115 pieces were made. A 1415 made in 1949 with the Eurasia cloisonné enamel dial (HU DE subvariant) was sold for CHF 970K by Phillips on May 13, 2018, lot 268.
In 1953 the reference 2523 replaces the 1415 after a modification of the Cottier calibre associated with a dual crown enabling to change the reference setting of the time zone. The 2523 is a luxury watch, most often equipped with an enamelled dial. The case embedding the double crown is a technical feat. Two batches were produced in two ranges of movement numbers for a possible high total of 5 + 20 watches or slightly more.
The 2523 is in turn replaced in 1957 by its variant 2523-1 with a simplification of the lugs and a metal dial. The production of HU movements ceases in 1965.
A pink gold 2523 in excellent condition without any sign of repair surfaced in 2010. It was twice sold by Christie's, for CHF 2.7M on November 15, 2010, lot 114, and for HK$ 70M on November 23, 2019, lot 2201. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house.
The dial and movement were made in 1953 and the case in 1954. The centre of its dial is not in cloisonné but is monochrome in a beautifully translucent ocean blue enamel. The watch was sold to Gobbi in Milan in 1957. It is the only 2523 to have on its dial a double signature of Patek Philippe and a retailer, a feature that is today eagerly sought after by watch collectors. The movement is from the second 2523 batch.
After the ephemeral 96 HU and 515 HU references used by Patek Philippe in the development phase, the reference 1415 HU released in 1939 marks a stabilization of that offer. 115 pieces were made. A 1415 made in 1949 with the Eurasia cloisonné enamel dial (HU DE subvariant) was sold for CHF 970K by Phillips on May 13, 2018, lot 268.
In 1953 the reference 2523 replaces the 1415 after a modification of the Cottier calibre associated with a dual crown enabling to change the reference setting of the time zone. The 2523 is a luxury watch, most often equipped with an enamelled dial. The case embedding the double crown is a technical feat. Two batches were produced in two ranges of movement numbers for a possible high total of 5 + 20 watches or slightly more.
The 2523 is in turn replaced in 1957 by its variant 2523-1 with a simplification of the lugs and a metal dial. The production of HU movements ceases in 1965.
A pink gold 2523 in excellent condition without any sign of repair surfaced in 2010. It was twice sold by Christie's, for CHF 2.7M on November 15, 2010, lot 114, and for HK$ 70M on November 23, 2019, lot 2201. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house.
The dial and movement were made in 1953 and the case in 1954. The centre of its dial is not in cloisonné but is monochrome in a beautifully translucent ocean blue enamel. The watch was sold to Gobbi in Milan in 1957. It is the only 2523 to have on its dial a double signature of Patek Philippe and a retailer, a feature that is today eagerly sought after by watch collectors. The movement is from the second 2523 batch.
1957 Patek Philippe Reference 2499
2022 SOLD for HK$ 60M by Sotheby's
Two references of wristwatches with perpetual calendar and moon phases were introduced nearly simultaneously in the early 1950s. The 2499 is a chronograph and the 2497 has the centre seconds. Their cases are similar except that the 2497 does not have the push button of the chronograph. At that time, no other manufacturer was able to produce a wristwatch with such a complication.
These models were assembled gradually over a very long time. The total production of the 2499 is 349 units from 1950 to 1985. The 2497 is even rarer : 115 units, from 1951 to 1963, or 179 units when adding its waterproof version 2438/1. 2497 and 2499 were available in the three golds and in platinum.
The first series of the 2499 had square chronograph buttons and applied Arabic numerals.
The second series has round buttons and baton or Arabic numerals. From that series, nine units are known in pink gold.
One of them made in 1957 and retailed in 1958 was sold for CHF 2.74M by Christie's on May 14, 2007, lot 158, and for HK $ 60M by Sotheby's on April 25, 2022, lot 2018. Signed by Gobbi Milano in the Moon phase subdial, it is the only pink gold 2499 2nd series to have the mark of a retailer. It is in a very original condition and has baton numerals.
These models were assembled gradually over a very long time. The total production of the 2499 is 349 units from 1950 to 1985. The 2497 is even rarer : 115 units, from 1951 to 1963, or 179 units when adding its waterproof version 2438/1. 2497 and 2499 were available in the three golds and in platinum.
The first series of the 2499 had square chronograph buttons and applied Arabic numerals.
The second series has round buttons and baton or Arabic numerals. From that series, nine units are known in pink gold.
One of them made in 1957 and retailed in 1958 was sold for CHF 2.74M by Christie's on May 14, 2007, lot 158, and for HK $ 60M by Sotheby's on April 25, 2022, lot 2018. Signed by Gobbi Milano in the Moon phase subdial, it is the only pink gold 2499 2nd series to have the mark of a retailer. It is in a very original condition and has baton numerals.
1968 The Exotic Daytona
2017 SOLD for $ 17.8M including premium
Rolex launches in 1963 the Cosmograph Daytona reference 6239 for the use of drivers of endurance racing cars. The brand believes that other customers will be proud to own such a watch with high-end performance. Sales are disappointing. To revive the model in late 1966 Rolex offers more stylish dials with a choice in a range of pleasing colors and with better designed numerals. This model is referred as 'exotic'.
Paul Newman discovers the joys of car racing in 1968 when he plays with Joanne Woodward for the movie Winning which will be released in the following year. Joanne is his wife in this film and since 1958 in life. She is unfaithful in the film and madly in love in their privacy.
Joanne is worried about Paul's new passion for this dangerous sport. She offers him in 1968 a Daytona 6239 exotic on the back of which she has made inscribed the good advice "Drive Carefully Me".
Hyperactive and philanthropist, Paul is one of Hollywood's most popular personalities. Maniac in the accuracy of time, he is crazy about his 6239. Readers of magazines have fun to see Paul exhibiting regularly on his wrist this Rolex, recognizable from a distance by the simplicity of its design with the three sub-dials. Since the mid-1980s, exotic Daytonas have been nicknamed Paul Newman by the collectors without the intervention of the brand and without distinction of models (6239, 6241 and 6262 to 6265).
Paul is nice. One day when his daughter Nell's boyfriend forgot his watch, he gave him the 6239. Nell and James later separated without ceasing to cooperate closely. This eponymous watch to all the Daytona Paul Newman lineage is for sale by Phillips in association with Bacs and Russo on October 26 in New York, lot 8. Its consignor is James and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Nell Newman Foundation created by Nell in 2010 to continue the charitable work of her father.
This watch intensely used by Paul has never been modified or reworked. It joins the glamor of Hollywood with the beautiful story of the two generations of Newmans. Observers consider that its estimate at $ 1M will be exceeded.
It is the first of three watches of that next sale discussed by the auctioneer Aurel Bacs in the video shared by Hong Kong Tatler.
Paul Newman discovers the joys of car racing in 1968 when he plays with Joanne Woodward for the movie Winning which will be released in the following year. Joanne is his wife in this film and since 1958 in life. She is unfaithful in the film and madly in love in their privacy.
Joanne is worried about Paul's new passion for this dangerous sport. She offers him in 1968 a Daytona 6239 exotic on the back of which she has made inscribed the good advice "Drive Carefully Me".
Hyperactive and philanthropist, Paul is one of Hollywood's most popular personalities. Maniac in the accuracy of time, he is crazy about his 6239. Readers of magazines have fun to see Paul exhibiting regularly on his wrist this Rolex, recognizable from a distance by the simplicity of its design with the three sub-dials. Since the mid-1980s, exotic Daytonas have been nicknamed Paul Newman by the collectors without the intervention of the brand and without distinction of models (6239, 6241 and 6262 to 6265).
Paul is nice. One day when his daughter Nell's boyfriend forgot his watch, he gave him the 6239. Nell and James later separated without ceasing to cooperate closely. This eponymous watch to all the Daytona Paul Newman lineage is for sale by Phillips in association with Bacs and Russo on October 26 in New York, lot 8. Its consignor is James and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Nell Newman Foundation created by Nell in 2010 to continue the charitable work of her father.
This watch intensely used by Paul has never been modified or reworked. It joins the glamor of Hollywood with the beautiful story of the two generations of Newmans. Observers consider that its estimate at $ 1M will be exceeded.
It is the first of three watches of that next sale discussed by the auctioneer Aurel Bacs in the video shared by Hong Kong Tatler.
2015 Patek Philippe 5016A-010
2015 SOLD for CHF 7.3M by Phillips for OnlyWatch
Organized every two years by the Association Monégasque contre les Myopathies, the OnlyWatch charity sale requires the offer by each participating brand of a watch guaranteed as unique of its kind.
Patek Philippe responds most often with a high-end model in a refractory metal unusual in its similar productions : titanium in 2007 and 2013, steel in 2011 and 2015. The Patek Philippe 5016A-010 sold by Phillips on November 7, 2015 fetched CHF 7.3M.
The 2017 event was entrusted to Christie's in Geneva on November 11. The titanium appeared again in 2017 with the unique Patek Philippe 5208T-010, lot 12 sold for CHF 6.2M.
Patek Philippe responds most often with a high-end model in a refractory metal unusual in its similar productions : titanium in 2007 and 2013, steel in 2011 and 2015. The Patek Philippe 5016A-010 sold by Phillips on November 7, 2015 fetched CHF 7.3M.
The 2017 event was entrusted to Christie's in Geneva on November 11. The titanium appeared again in 2017 with the unique Patek Philippe 5208T-010, lot 12 sold for CHF 6.2M.
2019 Five Chimes on the Wrist
2019 SOLD for CHF 31M by Christie's for OnlyWatch
In 2014, for celebrating the 175th anniversary of the brand, Patek Philippe release their first Grandmaster Chime wristwatch under the reference 5175 edited in seven units. Its 20 functions required 1,366 components for the movement and 215 components for the case, surpassing the 6200 Sky Moon Tourbillon. It is the achievement of 60,000 hours of development over seven years.
The 5175 is 48 mm in diameter and 16 mm in height with 11 pushers and buttons. Its central mechanism activates in parallel the visual reading on two dials including the perpetual calendar, the chimes of hours, quarters, minutes and day, and the acoustic alarm preselected with an accuracy of a quarter of an hour. The running time of the mechanical winding is 72 hours in silent mode and 30 hours in grande sonnerie.
Two of these applications are unprecedented : the insertion of an alarm in a wristwatch, and the audible indication of the day in the month in two digits covering 1 to 31 by the tens and units. The watch also strikes on demand the current hour and minute. A security prevents the user from operating two mechanisms at the same time if they are not compatible.
The reference 6300G in gray gold launched in 2016 is similar to the 5175 except that the references to the celebration have been removed.
The Only Watch charity sale is held every second year since 2005 for the benefit of the research on the Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The 2019 auction is managed by Christie's in Geneva on November 9.
According to the rules applicable to this operation, each manufacturer offers a watch for which it guarantees that it is and will remain a one-off. On this year Patek Philippe supplies the unique copy of Grandmaster Chime in stainless steel, reference 6300A-010, lot 28 estimated CHF 2.5M. The steel improves the sound. It is inscribed "The Only One" on one of the dials.
The lot includes a one-day private tour of the workshops and museum for two people and a lunch with Thierry Stern, president of Patek Philippe.
The 5175 is 48 mm in diameter and 16 mm in height with 11 pushers and buttons. Its central mechanism activates in parallel the visual reading on two dials including the perpetual calendar, the chimes of hours, quarters, minutes and day, and the acoustic alarm preselected with an accuracy of a quarter of an hour. The running time of the mechanical winding is 72 hours in silent mode and 30 hours in grande sonnerie.
Two of these applications are unprecedented : the insertion of an alarm in a wristwatch, and the audible indication of the day in the month in two digits covering 1 to 31 by the tens and units. The watch also strikes on demand the current hour and minute. A security prevents the user from operating two mechanisms at the same time if they are not compatible.
The reference 6300G in gray gold launched in 2016 is similar to the 5175 except that the references to the celebration have been removed.
The Only Watch charity sale is held every second year since 2005 for the benefit of the research on the Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The 2019 auction is managed by Christie's in Geneva on November 9.
According to the rules applicable to this operation, each manufacturer offers a watch for which it guarantees that it is and will remain a one-off. On this year Patek Philippe supplies the unique copy of Grandmaster Chime in stainless steel, reference 6300A-010, lot 28 estimated CHF 2.5M. The steel improves the sound. It is inscribed "The Only One" on one of the dials.
The lot includes a one-day private tour of the workshops and museum for two people and a lunch with Thierry Stern, president of Patek Philippe.
2021 Patek Philippe Desk Clock
2021 SOLD for CHF 9.5M by Christie's for OnlyWatch
Patek Philippe made a bang in the 2019 OnlyWatch charity auction with the unique example of the model 6300A-010 that fetched CHF 31M. It is derived from the Grandmaster Chime which is the most complicated wristwatch in their catalogue.
To go forward in 2021, the brand cleverly offered a clock that will not invite for a comparison with the 2019 entry.
This item is a modern version of an Art Déco desk clock made by them in 1923 for the demanding customer James Ward Packard which is kept in the Patek Philippe Museum. Henry Graves Jr managed to have a similar time piece. The Packard complicated clock was equipped with a perpetual calendar and moon phases with an eight-day power reserve. It is made of silver with solid-gold feet and inlays.
The OnlyWatch clock is the unique example of the 27001M-01 model. The angular shape with a hinged lid of this 165 x 125 x 76 mm instrument has no equivalent in the modern catalogues of the brand.
It features a perpetual calendar, moon phases, day-night indicator, week-number display and has a power reserve of 31 days and a precision rate of 1 second per day. The case and the cabinet are in sterling silver with vermeil decorative elements and American walnut inlays. In an additional exquisite refinement the dial is in a similar yellow gilt opaline hue as the 6300 of 2019.
The hammer was entrusted to Christie's on November 6, 2021. The Patek Philippe desk clock was sold for CHF 9.5M, lot 41. Please watch the video shared by Watch I love.
To go forward in 2021, the brand cleverly offered a clock that will not invite for a comparison with the 2019 entry.
This item is a modern version of an Art Déco desk clock made by them in 1923 for the demanding customer James Ward Packard which is kept in the Patek Philippe Museum. Henry Graves Jr managed to have a similar time piece. The Packard complicated clock was equipped with a perpetual calendar and moon phases with an eight-day power reserve. It is made of silver with solid-gold feet and inlays.
The OnlyWatch clock is the unique example of the 27001M-01 model. The angular shape with a hinged lid of this 165 x 125 x 76 mm instrument has no equivalent in the modern catalogues of the brand.
It features a perpetual calendar, moon phases, day-night indicator, week-number display and has a power reserve of 31 days and a precision rate of 1 second per day. The case and the cabinet are in sterling silver with vermeil decorative elements and American walnut inlays. In an additional exquisite refinement the dial is in a similar yellow gilt opaline hue as the 6300 of 2019.
The hammer was entrusted to Christie's on November 6, 2021. The Patek Philippe desk clock was sold for CHF 9.5M, lot 41. Please watch the video shared by Watch I love.
