There are some hard realities that we all need to accept at some point in our lives: death, taxes, and the fact that there should be SWISS written under 6 o’clock on our Patek Philippe dials. This last point has resulted in arguments, fights, and a few borderline wars in the past few years between collectors, auction houses, dealers, and horological scholars. But the facts are the facts; you generally want to see SWISS written on your dial.
I have seen sellers present a Patek Philippe wristwatch time and time again and swear that their watch is ‘fresh to market from the original owner’ and ‘never left a vault’ etc. etc., but then upon further inspection, the SWISS is missing from the dial. The arguments are always something like this: ‘This reference is a rare variant from a particular time that did not require SWISS on the dial’; ‘This dial was exported to a place that did not require SWISS on the dial’; and ‘The SWISS is hidden under the bezel.’ My favorite line is ‘This is like a rare upside-down postage stamp. This example was never printed with SWISS and it makes it even more special.’
As Werner Sonn, retired president of HSWA used to say, BUPKIS!
Changing the definition of Swiss made
Here is the truth. Your Patek Philippe should say SWISS on the dial, or other variants such as MADE IN SWITZERLAND or SWISS MADE depending on the era and market destination. Over time, the definition of SWISS MADE has changed and most recently Swiss law requires that the movement must have 50% of the value of components from Switzerland and 100% of the movement must be adjusted and assembled in Switzerland. The movement must be cased in Switzerland and the final controls conducted in Switzerland. This is what earns it the right to show SWISS MADE on the dial. In the world of Patek Philippe, this obviously means each and every watch.
Dial deterioration
For vintage Patek timepieces, the SWISS made description changes over time and even the language is sometimes different based on the export destination. Start taking a closer look at your dials and you may see things that surprise you and at least make for good conversation.
Here’s the bottom line: when a dial is cleaned or refinished – and we will dig deep into this later in other articles – the first mark to look for is the SWISS. For Patek Philippe wristwatches, it was generally printed and not in hard enamel, so it can be easily washed away during a dial cleaning. I have also seen it printed on top of the glazing of enamel dials (for example on a ref. 2481) and it can chip off with time. On black dials with gilt printing, it can also be a victim of time and also with wear, with the case being open and closed. However, my recommendation is to look at the dial in its entirety, assess the consistency of the aging, and decide for yourself if the SWISS should be there. Odds are, it should be.
