Patek Philippe watches: history, models, and features
Patek Philippe watches: history, models, and features
Introduction
Patek Philippe watches are synonymous with great class. The brand has a long-lasting experience in crafting luxury timepieces, and through its history, has stood out thanks to awards and innovations, which set it among the world's most refined watch brands.
Founded in Geneva in 1839 by Antoine Norbert de Patek and François Czapek, it took just six years to a patent for their keyless winding and hand-setting system. The story goes that Patek invented the first-ever Swiss wristwatch, made in 1869 for CountessKoscowicz of Hungary.
After just a few years, the brand gained worldwide recognition thanks to its craftsmen's extraordinary technical skills: in 1881, it got a patent for the precision regulator, in 1889 the patent for the perpetual calendar mechanism for pocket watches, and in 1902 the patent for the first-ever double chronograph.
Over the years, Patek Philippe watches have unstoppably stood out, becoming a favorite choice among prominent personalities, including actors, showbiz celebrities, politicians, and sports stars.
Patek Philippe watches features.
A clear vision paved the brand's road to success. A Patek Philippe watch's main pillars include:
Tradition and independence: Patek Philippe belongs to a handful of family-owned businesses, producing most of its parts in-house. It guarantees superior product quality as well as parts sourcing's exact origin.
Superb craftsmanship: Patek Philippe watches are hand-assembled and finished to perfection inside the manufacturer's workshops. Each part is machined and (or) hand-finished to eliminate the slightest possible imperfection.
Luxury Materials: Many Patek Philippe watches come in steel. However, this brand is among those using the highest percentage of precious materials on their products since it uses many types of gold or platinum.
Extensive offering: the collections include more than 200 different watch options, which, despite often showcasing a typical design, offer a selection of variants to meet the most demanding watch connoisseur's expectations.
Patek Philippe price list
We are talking about products of the highest quality possible and, as a consequence, their prices reflect the uncommon combination of innovative technologies and precious materials. Here is why Patek Philippe's price can vary very much across the product's catalog.
Here are some examples along with reference and price list:
5159J, Grand Complications - approximately 88,700 euros
5204R, Grand Complications - approximately 275,000 euros
530R, Grand Complications - approximately 500,000 euros
6102R, Grand Complications - approximately 275,000 euros
4897R, Calatrava - approx. 27,000 euros
5196R, Calatrava - approximately 22,000 euros
7200/200R, Calatrava - about 39,000 euros
4899/901G, Calatrava - approximately 96,000 euros
5738R, Golden Ellipse - about 30,000 euros
7010/1R, Nautilus - approximately 43,000 euros
7118/1A, Nautilus - approximately 25,000 euros
5726A, Nautilus - approximately 40,000 euros
4226R, Golden Ellipse - 4,500 euros
5119G, Calatrava - about 13,800 euros
Patek Philippe collections
Patek Philippe Calatrava
Showcasing unparalleled elegance, this collection's watches have belonged to Patek Philippe's offering for over 80 years. The Calatrava collection includes many options geared towards guaranteeing superior refinement if you're looking for a quintessentially elegant yet complicated wristwatch.
Interestingly, this collection currently includes the most affordable Patek watches ever, i.e., some discontinued hand-wound watches featuring a small seconds counter at six, you can purchase for as little as 10,000 euros approximate, in as-used condition. Here is how to make a Patek watch yours at quite an affordable price.
There are countless classic self-winding models, featuring central seconds and date windows at three. They either come in steel, gold, or platinum with a finely engraved and decorated dial.
The Nautilus by Patek Philippe is the quintessential luxury sports watch and a reference among its siblings. The Nautilus product range also includes yellow, pink, or white gold options.
A Nautilus comes as either a classic three-hand watch layout or a complicated timepiece: you'll find annual calendars or chronographs, moon-phase complication, or a perpetual calendar, for example.
This collection interestingly offers options conceived for him or her.
Patek Philippe Complications and Grand Complications
Patek Philippe is synonymous with the finest watchmaking; its complications and grand complications best express the brand's capabilities and legacy. Complications Include perpetual calendar, world time mechanisms, tourbillons, minute repeater, and more. Combining exceptional finishes and stunning materials, the watches belonging to these collections are collectors' pieces for the most refined watch connoisseur.
Since they are the most intricate and complicated timepieces, their prices are for a few people and can reach hundreds of thousands of Euros and beyond.
Patek Philippe Golden Ellipse and Gondolo
Like the porthole-inspired Nautilus, Golden Ellipse and Gondolo play with distinctive case designs to offer classic timepieces to him or her.
The Golden Ellipse was launched in 1968 and featured an elliptical-shaped case, abiding by the golden section's rules. The Gondolo collection, on the other hand, is a tribute to art deco in many forms. Variety is the mainstream since it offers rectangular, cushion-shaped, or tonneau designs that combine various colors and materials.