Patek Philippe reference 5131 is part of the long lineage of world-time wristwatches made by Patek Philippe. Introduced in 2008 in yellow gold, it was later followed by a white gold model in 2009 and finally by pink gold and platinum versions, it was the first modern worldtime reference to be graced with the fabled cloisonné dial featuring geographic maps.

The various cloisonné enamel dials initially only depicted a map of the Americas, later models also featured Asia, Africa and Europe, as with the present model.

Worldtime watches were invented, as is the case with most innovations, out of necessity. With the advent of the industrial age came the means necessary to facilitate global trade and travel and, as a direct result, there was a need for timekeeping devices capable of tracking time in multiple locations. Between 1930 and 1931, Louis Cottier designed an ingenious, ultra-thin mechanism that simultaneously displayed the correct hours across the world's time zones through a rotating 24-hour ring, in addition to the local time.

The city of choice (local time zone) would be set at the 12 o'clock position with the hours/minutes hand set at local time. The highly user friendly design, used until the present day, would then display the correct time in both hours and minutes, night and day, for every time zone in the world simultaneously, while clearly indicating local time - all via a single dial.

The white gold case of present example in a perfect frame for the vibrant cloisonné enamel center dial depicting Europe, Africa and Asia in a wonderful array of blues, greens and yellows all outlined in fine gold.

A well-balanced 40mm in diameter, this modern horological masterpiece marries the old and the new perfectly, and is sure to be the perfect companion for the well-traveled connoisseur.