From the very beginning of Patek Philippe in 1839, the people who were fortunate to own or collect Patek timepieces were members of a privileged elite. In fact, Antoine Norbert de Patek started his business by providing timepieces for the people he knew personally: his own circle of friends from the Polish aristocracy. Very quickly, … Continued
On one of my first visits to Patek Philippe in Geneva in the 1990s, soon after I had joined the company, I had the privilege of standing on a vast, flat expanse of concrete foundation with Philippe Stern. This foundation was located in the then quiet suburb of Plan-les-Ouates, an area of mostly fields near … Continued
The last 12 months have been an extraordinary time for watch collecting and rising values have many in the watch world asking, ‘What next?’. With current watch production and distribution heavily disrupted, and the overall rising tide of interest in watch collecting, we are seeing billions of dollars flowing into the pre-owned and vintage watch … Continued
Collectability: Chances are most Collectability readers have seen your work and ‘discoveries’ but don’t know the story of the man known as ‘The Eagle Eyed Watch Spotter’. To begin, who are you? Nick Gould: I’m from Australia and I am a keen watch enthusiast. How did you get started down this admirably obsessive path? Timepieces … Continued
At Collectability, we take great pride in our scholarship of all things Patek Philippe and nothing gives us more pleasure than to learn the views and insights from others in the watch community. In this in-depth study of the iconic ref. 3940, our Italian friend Federico Muggia, @fedoclock, dives deep into the world of the reference … Continued
In 1921, Albert Einstein was awarded The Nobel Prize in Physics “for his services to Theoretical Physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect.” Now what does this have to do with Patek Philippe? To understand solar powered Patek Philippe timepieces, we must start from the beginning and photoelectric cells. … Continued
Question: What was the first complicated wristwatch made by Patek Philippe for women? Answer: ref. 4864 Travel Time in 1997. It may have taken Patek 70 years to include ladies in its series of complicated wristwatches, but the choice of a Travel Time movement was significant. In this article, we will discover the origins of … Continued
At the Basel watch fair in 1999, four female staff members of Patek Philippe were given a new watch to wear: the Twenty~4. I was one of those lucky ladies and it was an experience I will not forget. Whenever I left the Patek booth, I was mobbed — “There’s the Twenty~4!” and suddenly my … Continued
Reflecting on my time at Patek Philippe is a heart-warming exercise. I learned all I know about watches and watchmaking from my time with the company. This included learning the mechanics and techniques used throughout the industry as a comparison with how Patek Philippe manufactures its watches. They even showed me what makes this ancient … Continued
1989 was a pivotal year in Patek Philippe’s history. The year marked the company’s 150th anniversary and solidified Philippe Stern’s indelible stamp on changing the future of Patek Philippe. This was Philippe Stern’s opportunity to prove to the world that fine mechanical watches were here to stay. Not only did he introduce eight limited edition … Continued
For the first time, Collectability will be presenting an in-depth series on Patek Philippe commemorative timepieces. There are many important and iconic limited editions in Patek’s catalog of exceptional timepieces and we want to give each collection the attention it deserves. In some ways, the term ‘limited edition’ is misleading and at Collectability, we prefer … Continued
