It is interesting to note that in the early 1980s, amidst the quartz crisis affecting the Swiss watchmaking industry, there were still retailers who would commission high complication pieces from brands who had maintained the expertise to make them for collectors with the passion to buy them.

This is why the present reference 881/1 stands out amongst this era’s production. Not only is it a highly complicated mechanical masterpiece, but its ultimate audacity resides in the fact that it is a pocketwatch.

The reference 881 was made in extremely low numbers during the 1980s and featured a minute repeater, perpetual calendar with phases of the moon, and a 24-hour indicator.

The present lot has the particularity of also featuring a prestigious and rarely seen equation of time complication at 12 o’clock. A highly complex astronomical indication, the equation of time is the difference between when the sun is at its highest point in the sky on a given day, also known as true or apparent solar time, and mean time – the time indicated on a watch or clock which is divided into days of twenty four hours.

The Earth’s rotation around its axis and the fact that our planet’s orbit isn’t perfectly round means that sometimes the earth travels a bit faster, sometimes a bit slower and thus the solar time varies each day and can be either a few minutes longer or shorter than twenty four hours. In fact the equation of time is zero only four times a year. For the rest of the year, solar time can be ahead of mean time by as much as about 16 minutes, or behind by just over 14 minutes.

The present watch is part of a series of four made by special order for Chronometrie Beyer in Zürich in the early 1980s for some of the retailer's most important clients. Research has shown that amongst these four timepieces, three are fitted with a hunter case (reference 881/1) and one with an open face case (reference 880/1). One of the four, with movement number 866’721, resides in the collection of Musée d'Horlogerie du Locle.

The present lot differs from the other two hunter cased models as it is the only one with a plain polished case whereas the other two are both engine-turned. Another interesting difference is that it is the only watch without Beyer's signature on the dial, but only the engraved Beyer internal stock number on the case. With its combination of a minute repeater and perpetual calendar, Patek Philippe’s most sought after complications, this exceptionally rare pocket watch is a true trophy for the world’s most important collections.