Manufacturer: Patek Philippe Year: 1981 Reference No: 912 Movement No: 937'024 Case No: 2'789'966 Material: 18K yellow gold, diamonds, rubies and pearls Calibre: Manual, cal. 17-170 SQU, jeweled Dimensions: 48mm Diameter Signed: Movement signed Accessories: Accompanied by a Patek Philippe Extract from the Archives confirming the production date in 1980, date of sale on December 10, 1980 and that the watch is fitted with 177 diamonds (1.71 ct.), 12 rubies (0.15 ct.) and pearls
Catalogue Essay
A masterwork of watchmaking, skeletonisation, and jewellery, this watch is an impressive 48mm in diameter but incredibly thin, with its elegant profile matched only by the barely-there movement. Despite having been open-worked to an astonishing degree, the calibre 17’’’170 inside has been richly hand-engraved with an elaborate motif that continues into the front and back of the case, including the bow. The case of the watch is set further set with diamonds on its front and back bezels, as well as the bow. A dozen rubies sit around the front bezel as hour markers, accentuated by a large ruby cabochon inlaid into the crown.
Most unusually, the case band set with an uninterrupted procession of pearls. Two crucial details set this particular watch apart from others like it, rendering it most probably a unique creation: Firstly, this example is fitted with has crimson hands that match the rubies perfectly, in contrast to the usual black hands fitted on other examples. The red hands are exactly the size, shape, length, and profile as the black hands found on the standard models, and are likely a custom order.
The other unique characteristic of the watch is the diamond setting. A similar example that sold at auction in 2006, with a movement number just one digit away, was set with 244 diamonds totalling 1.87 carats. This watch, in contrast, is set with 177 diamonds of 1.71 carats, signifying that the stones on this watch are likely larger in size.
Since its founding in 1839, this famous Geneva-based firm has been surprising its clientele with superbly crafted timepieces fitted with watchmaking's most prestigious complications. Traditional and conservative designs are found across Patek Philippe's watches made throughout their history — the utmost in understated elegance.
Well-known for the Graves Supercomplication — a highly complicated pocket watch that was the world’s most complicated watch for 50 years — this family-owned brand has earned a reputation of excellence around the world. Patek's complicated vintage watches hold the highest number of world records for results achieved at auction compared with any other brand. For collectors, key models include the reference 1518, the world's first serially produced perpetual calendar chronograph, and its successor, the reference 2499. Other famous models include perpetual calendars such as the ref. 1526, ref. 3448 and 3450, chronographs such as the reference 130, 530 and 1463, as well as reference 1436 and 1563 split seconds chronographs. Patek is also well-known for their classically styled, time-only "Calatrava" dress watches, and the "Nautilus," an iconic luxury sports watch first introduced in 1976 as the reference 3700 that is still in production today.