A brief rundown on Patek Philippe’s high watchmaking history

Patek Philippe reaches new heights with a triumvirate of grand complications

SINCE THE BEGINNING, Patek Philippe has been committed to the pursuit of high watchmaking. Among the first timepieces crafted by the watchmaker was a quarter repeater that can now be admired at the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva. In the 20th century, the company earned a legendary reputation for super complicated pocket watches featuring chiming functions as well as elaborate astronomical displays.

At the same time, Patek Philippe was involved in miniaturising grand complications so they could be worn on the wrist, as evidenced in 1925 by the first known wristwatch with a perpetual calendar. In the last decades of the 20th century, the watchmaker again celebrated a milestone in the form of two pocket watches that the world had never seen before: the Calibre 89 with 33 complications that would be the world’s most complicated portable mechanical timepiece for 25 years, and the Star Calibre 2000 with 21 complications. In 2001, the art of miniaturising highly elaborate mechanisms found its ultimate expression in the Sky Moon Tourbillon (12 complications) and subsequently, in 2014, in the Grandmaster Chime that, with 20 complications, would become Patek Philippe’s most complicated wristwatch.

Today, Patek Philippe has one of the most prolific collections of grand complications, including minute repeaters with perpetual calendars, tourbillons, astronomical timepieces and models that combine several of these highly coveted functions. These watches follow two fundamental principles, one of them being to accommodate maximum technical complexity in a minimal volume (smallest possible height and diameter), allowing the design of very slender cases that project timeless elegance. Secondly, each complication ‒ no matter how elaborate ‒ must be simple to operate and be a role model of convenience, functional integrity and legibility. The three new grand complications of 2020 perfectly illustrate this philosophy, and embody a level of craftsmanship that makes each Patek Philippe a precious work of art.

MINUTE REPEATER TOURBILLON

Since the launch of its first pocket watch with a minute repeater in 1845, Patek

Philippe has established itself as one of the gifted interpreters of the music of time. This remarkable know-how comes to the fore even in the most extraordinary creations, such as the Sky Moon Tourbillon wristwatch featuring a minute repeater with cathedral gongs, and the Grandmaster Chime with five chiming functions. But never before had Patek Philippe crafted a minute repeater with a striking mechanism that was visible on the dial side.

Unveiled in 2019 in a limited edition of 12 pieces as a world debut on the occasion of the “Watch Art Grand Exhibition Singapore 2019”, the latest iteration of the Ref. 5303 Minute Repeater Tourbillon stands out with its open architecture without a conventional dial. The repeater mechanism ‒ for the first time with the hammers and gongs ‒ can be admired in action without removing the watch from the wrist. The transparency aspect also applies to the tourbillon: the back side of its cage can be seen beneath the seconds subdial at 6 o’clock. In this veritably perfect composition, the filigreed steel parts glisten against the backdrop of the rose gilt plate.

The aesthetic of the manually wound movement has been subtly reworked in a skeleton style to emphasise its appeal. Patek Philippe has also mobilised its heritage in the manual finissage of movement parts by decorating the plate and hammers with Genevan circular graining and a circular satin finish respectively, and applying a delicate perlage to the recesses.

The inimitable rose-gold case sports a wide, cambered and polished bezel as well as whitegold inlays with foliage engravings that grace the case-band and the strap lugs. The white-gold slide in the left-hand case flank that activates the minute repeater features the same motif.

The movement can be admired through the sapphire-crystal case-back and is framed by a white-gold rim. Its open-worked decoration echoes the case inlays and the repeater slide.

SPLIT-SECONDS CHRONOGRAPH

In 2015, Patek Philippe launched the first split-seconds chronograph endowed with the proprietary caliber CHR 29-535 PS, featuring a platinum case and a black enamel dial. Coveted by connoisseurs, this grand complication has now been subtly upgraded with a new blue face with glossy finish that reflects Patek Philippe’s proud tradition in Grand Feu enamel dials. It is an oeuvre of unmatched chromatic intensity, made by hand on the basis of an 18k gold dial plate.

Superbly legible, the hours and minutes are tracked by slender leaf-shaped hands with luminous coatings and applied Breguet numerals in white gold. The results of shortplatinum time measurements are readable with the same precision and speed: the sweep chronograph and rattrapante hands as well as the instantaneous 30-minute counter hand contrast as clearly against the blue dial as do the whiteprinted scales.

The two-phase chronograph movement with two pushers for the chronograph functions and a rattrapante pusher integrated in the crown at 3 o’clock is an impressive example of how tradition meets innovation. The classic elements of the basic architecture are the manual winder, dual-column-wheel control, and the horizontal wheel clutch. Nonetheless, it is a 21st-century movement endowed with extensive optimisation details and an advanced rattrapante mechanism.

The elegant polished platinum case with a concave bezel and satin-finished flank recesses is worn on an alligator strap in shiny night blue secured by a platinum fold-over clasp.

As is the case with all of Patek Philippe’s wristwatches, the new Split-Seconds Chronograph is graced with a small diamond between the lugs at 6 o’clock. It replaces its predecessor with the black enamel dial, presenting a new combination of superb craftsmanship and watchmaking artistry.

PERPETUAL CALENDAR CHRONOGRAPH

As the heir of Patek Philippe’s grand 1941 classic, the Perpetual Calendar Chronograph has been available since 2018 in platinum with a golden opaline dial and a rose-gold version with a gold “goutte”-style bracelet. This year, for the first time, the company introduces a yellow-gold model in a timeless design that pairs a concave bezel with two-tier lugs.

The silvery opaline dial with applied baton indexes and leaf-shaped hands in yellow gold assures excellent legibility. The displays of the perpetual calendar are tastefully balanced with an analogue date at 6 o’clock and a double aperture for the day and month at 12 o’clock. They are complemented with two small round apertures for the day/night indicator and the leap year cycle as well as the typical moonphase window.

The movement is the first chronograph calibre with a perpetual calendar developed in-house in 2011. It combines traditional architecture (horizontal clutch, column wheel and manual winder) with six patented innovations for the chronograph functions and stands out with its extremely thin calendar mechanism (1.65mm). The new Perpetual Calendar Chronograph is worn on a hand-stitched matt chocolate brown alligator strap.