The Story of Patek and Philippe
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| Exclusive clock of Patek Philippe |
The new generation Patek Philippe conquered the heart and soul of modern men and women with the saying, you never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the next generation, embodies the ethos and urge behind the possession of the legendry and timeless brand. The ownership of the brand is a for the next generation, delineates the social value of the ownership. The owner is not merely buying a gadget to measure time but gaining entry into a social rank, envied and imitated at the same time. Patek Philippe beyond doubt is the neighbors’ envy and the owners’ pride.
symbol of capital and class. The phrase,
Some people harbor the notion that Patek Philippe is the name of a single person. However, the names are the sir names of two independent watchmakers who had made a name for themselves in the early days of watch making and the product that they and their enterprise so carefully crafted is an enduring lore for generations to come. The synergy of their collaboration reinvigorated a unique fusion of mechanical perfection in the movement of the watch as well in the appearance of the product. Antoni Norbert Patek was Polish and Adrien Philippe was French.
The full name of Patek is Antonia Patek and he was a polish born in 1811. Though Patek now rests on his laurels as the watch maker that launched and illustrious tradition of quality, elegance and craftsmanship, his debut into the world of fame was as a soldier in the 1st Polish Mounted Rifles Regiment. He was wounded twice in the war, decorated Golden Cross for his valor and finally rose to the rank of a lieutenant. Political situation forced him to take a detour through Prussia , France and finally to settle down in Switzerland . After unsuccessfully trying many trades he thrived as a seller of expensive watches. The starting of the Patek, Czapek & Co with the Warsaw watchmaker was only necessary sequel to a successful sales career.
The company started in a small way making only 200 watches every year using a small work force. It was later wound up due to the increasing inability of the Poles to work together. The vacuum was soon filled by Andrien Philippe, a French who made a revolutionary winding design which made headlines in the industrial world. Patek was quick to realize the value of Philippe and employed him as the head watchmaker and in 1851 Philippe was given the full partnership in the firm and it began operating as Patek Philippe& Co. The enduring lure of the Patek Philippe watches is due to the level of perfection and excellence that these men and their successors brought to their trade.
There is
an aura of greatness around this brand that ticks for generations
of patrons. A simple statistics show that Patek Philippe watches are
certainly the most expensive watches of the world. Take for examples hundred
watches that were auctioned. Among them 80 watches were this illustrious brand.
This is indeed a noble testimony for a watch company. Today, the entire fashion
world has heard about the brand. There are many patrons who long for these
watches.
It is worth
examining the secret behind the success of the brand. The brand stands for
unique worth and dependability. A peep into the grueling tests that each watch
undergoes before they reach your wrists shows that quality is not an accident
that it is a choice. Each watch is put to 600 hours of testing. Depending on
the
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| Perpetual calendar and moonphase wristwatch |
model the watches are under observation for 15 to 30 days. Due to the time
consuming nature of the tests for the entire global consumption only 30000
watches are made. This shows some series will have only a handful of watches.
The brand
is certainly basking on its ancient glory which is certainly well deserved. The
Patek Philippe Company has many feathers on its cap. Till the company
introduced crown winding in 1839, the pocket watches were wound with the aid of
a key. This is one of the 70 patents registered by the company. The first
wrist
watch was gifted to the world by the company. This happened way back in 1868.
The company also produced the first wrist watch with a perpetual calendar in
1925. 95% of the company’s components bear the coveted Geneva Seal. All these
make Patek Philippe a prestigious watch that the world recognizes as the
ultimate symbol of class and prestige.
There is
a galore of great watches gifted to the world by the brand, Patek Philippe Calatrava, Patek Philippe Gondolo and Philippe’s
Ref.5146. It is not the tradition of the company to name the watches by
spectacular names. The practice is to call them by prosaic and mundane numbers
with no romantic halo about them. The name Patek Philippe is indeed a romantic
name and there is no need to embellish is it further for the world recognizes
the brand by the very name.
Patek Philippe 8 Commemorative Watches
The 8
watches launched to commemorate the 150th anniversary have been welcomed by the
watch lovers the world over. Patek
Philippe watches have a
checkered history spanning over 170 years. The first Patek Philippe watches saw
the light of day in the year 1839 and in their fascinating story they have
adorned the most fantastic and glamorous people of the world. There is nothing
like a Patek Philippe in the world of glitter, glamour and wealth. The
possession of one is your guaranteed ticket to the world of class.
When a
watch has been rated so high so many magnificent men and women of history some
celebration is only proper. To commemorate the company’s 150 glorious years
between 1989 and 2000 they produced eight great watches which have become
legendary in the world today. Indeed, the future is with in the hold of the
company but they are not ready to say adieu to the past. With awe and respect
for tradition the watches were limited edition the tools used to make them were
also destroyed.
It is
good to take a sneak peek of these great watches. The Jumping Hour made in 1989 is a limited edition
watch with only 500 pieces 450 in rose gold and 50 in platinum. The officer’s
campaign watch originally meant for the army officers in the in the world war
one was recreated under the name The
Officer is a limited edition
watch with only 2200 examples only. 2000 of them were in yellow gold, 150 in
while gold and fifty in platinum. The
Caliber 89 is the most
complicated watch on earth. Its total development time was 9 years. The watch
made of 18 carat gold weighs 1100 grams. The model called The Pagoda with refined curves was produced
in 1997. Only 2000 examples were made. 1100 of them were in yellow gold, 500 in
rose gold, 250 in white gold and 150 in platinum. The Minute-Repeating Chronometer was made in very limited edition
of only 30, 10 in yellow gold, 10 in rose gold and 10 in platinum. The 10 Days had power reserve for 10 days. It was
made in 2000 at the turn of the millennium. Only 3000 numbers were made. Of
them 1500 was in yellow gold, 750 in rose gold and 450 in white gold and 300 in
platinum.
Patek Philippe Calatrava
Today
watch making is the work of an artist and all artists have there own style
going about their work. A sculptor of watches works on a philosophy and this
appears as a signature on his products. Patek
Philippe Catlatrava watch was
first developed in 1932. The same philosophy that marked the early model
appears in the latter models too. The maiden Calatrava was the product of the
philosophy of the illustrious German art school called Bauhaus which insists on
the relation between form and function; the function decides the form of the
watch.
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| Patek Philippe Calatrava |
The
re-launch of the model recently has been received with lots of gusto. It is
good to take e a sneak peek of the model. The recent sibling of the legendry Patek Philippe Calatrava called Calatrava 5196 has an elegant 37 millimeter diameter
case with smooth polished bezel. The noble lineage is intact in the new
product. True to the inspiring philosophy of function determining the form, the
watch althrough exhibits a predilection for rotundity. The watch exhibits a
series of circular movements. The crown should turn, the balance wheel and the
whole inside machinery should certainly move in spherical fashion. The path of
the hour and minute hands can only move in a round fashion. The German school
believed that the purpose of the watch is to show time and unnecessary
embellishment might distract the viewer from the main purpose of showing time.
So the watch is built on a practical attitude eschewing all ornate
embellishments.
There is
nothing more beautiful than God’s creations in their fascinating bareness. All
stylistic tapestries of the new Calatrava
Ref.5196 are subdued. This
absence of embellishments, in the flamboyant world of glitter and glamour of
watches, makes the watch unique by its arresting simplicity. The watch has a
wide bezel which is mirror polished. The solid piece is water resistant at 25
meters. The new Calatrava is presented in three gold and one platinum models.
The 18 karat models in white, rose and yellow gold have concave face with a
satin tint. The hour and minute indicators are made of gold. In the platinum
model the watch is given a silvery face in which the numerals made of white
gold stand out. All models are equipped with hand made alligator strap.
The Patek Philippe and Pope Pius IX
In the early days of watch making only a few privileged
people owned watches and among were the Popes. The Popes, men who stepped into
the shoes of the Fisherman and held the keys of the kingdom were like kings and they were
great patrons of art. However, there is ubiquitous consensus that they were
great patrons and connoisseurs of art and culture.
There are many great works for which the Popes were
responsible. All most all know that St.Peter’s Basilica and the Sistine Chapel
were the gifts of Papacy to Rome . The numerous
artifacts that Vatican museum house and the many churches in Rome that bear the
Papal tiara and keys, are lasting tributes to the generosity of the
Pontiffs across the age.
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| Pope Pius IX (1792-1878) |
What has the Pope had to do with a watch? Yes they had much
do with watches and a Pontiff has found his way in the annals of horology.
He is Pope Pius IX (1792-1878), the Pope who reigned the longest. The Vatican recently raised him to the status of a
Blessed, a step that takes him closer to Sainthood. He was a controversial
Pontiff but his zeal for reform of the Church and many innovations have
received applause. Among his appreciation of the finer things in life is his
passion for Patek Philippe watches. Pope Pius IX was gifted a custom made watch
in 1867 by Cardinal Gaspard Mermillod. At that time it cost 1370 Swiss francs.
It is good to take a sneak peak in to the story of the
watch which the Pope liked very much. The artifact was made of yellow gold with
a 49 mm case. Pope Pius IX’s coat of arms was enameled on it. The watch carried
the inscription which may be translated as: Father,
King, may you rule the souls and the hearts, Geneva
Charlotte Bronte’s Patek Philippe Watch
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| Charlotte Bronte |
Though in the 19th century men only wrote novels some
women tried this genre successfully. One such successful writer is Charlotte
Bronte. . With the publication of Jane
Eyre in 1847 she shot up in
fame as a spectacular woman celebrity. The present day new rich and
famous make their way into the world of glitter and glamour by the purchase of
a status symbol. Bronte also did the same. Possessing a timepiece in the
Victorian England reflected the radiance of the owner’s triumph. She got for
herself a pendant style Patek
Philippe. This has romanticized
the Patek Philippe among the English fans of Bronte.
In those
days men wore watches in their pocket and women either around their neck or
pinned on their dress. Bronte might have pinned the watch on her frock or might
have worn as a chain around her neck. The watch had gold case and opened on
hinges and revealed in the inner lid an enamel portrait of an affectionate
mother and child. In the days when only kings and queens used watches she had a
watch; like Queen Victoria , Bronte too had
a cute clock to pin on her frock.
There are a lot of references to watches in her novel which
she was taken by the enchanting world of watches which in those days were the
possessions of a rare few. In
her 450 odd pages of the
sprawling novel, Jane Eyre there are a couple of references
to the watches. There are
at least eleven direct references to watches. The novelty of the gadget and
perhaps Bronte’s subliminal fascination of the new status symbol of the
successful might have triggered these allusions. Three of the characters, all
from the upper echelon of the social rank, in the novel wear watches parading
their class as well as affluence.
The first allusion to the watch break out from Jane, the heroine of the novel
while watching the superintendent of Lowood called Maria Temple: a gold watch (watches were not so
common then as now) shone at her girdle. For the social historian the
reference shows the paucity of gadgets like watches in the Victorian England
and asserts the fact that they were available only to special classes. For the
student of sartorial studies the reference gives a peep into the manner of
wearing a watch by woman in that period.The culmination of the novel witnesses
the gift of the gold watch by the hero, Rochester to Jane
Eyre, after he became blind. The urge to own
brands like Patek Philippe is deeply ingrained in the psyche due
to cultural and literary value.
Patek Phillippe Watches in Christie’s and Sotheby’s
A watch
is like an heirloom and its value increases over the years. The great prices
fetched by Patek
The older
the watch the more price a watch gets. The user of the watch is also a factor
that determines the value of the watch. It is Sotheby’s and Christie’s that
usually conduct the auctions of the so called Masterpieces
of the Time Museums. Hammer has fell in these two auction houses a number
of times and many a proud watch lovers have pocketed some of the great
masterpieces in the annals of time. In most of these auctions the watches that
have received the highest price are mostly Patek Phillippe watches. One fetched
a mind boggling price of $ 11,002,500 and the person who bagged the watch
wished to remain anonymous. This was a record price for a watch. This in fact
set a trend in watch auctions.
Which was
that lucky watch that went on top for price? The watch that was found worthy
for such fantastic price by a buyer is called the Graves Supercomplication. It is a marvelous piece possessing 24
The
Supercomplication indeed
changed the auction scene. People understood that old watches are recession
proof. Perhaps the subliminal influence of the dictum of John Keats: A thing beauty is a joy for ever accounts for man’s love for great
watches. Great watches are like works of art, they are not made and they are
crafted. This ethos has made Patek Phillippe a much desired watch and the
impact of this realization is felt by many.
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| Sotheby’s |
Many
great watches owned by well known and lesser known people are auctioned
regularly. A study of the trends at Christie’s and Sotheby’s show Patek
Phillippe is the leader in most auctions. What is rationale behind the enduring
charm of the brand? You buy Patek Phillippe because you want to possess it for
ever. Your aim is not making money from this deal. Those who auction these
watches are passionate lovers of the brand. Due to the great strides made by
the Patek Phillippe over the years as the finally crafted watches it has become
one of the most important names in horology
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