Continuing its annual tradition, Patek Philippe has just revealed its unique creation to benefit Children Action, the Nautilus Ref. 5711/1500A. Slated to be sold at auction with all proceeds going to the Geneva charity, the Nautilus Ref. 5711/1500A is entirely stainless steel and entirely engraved.
The case, bezel, bracelet, and case back are hand engraved with a “Maori-inspired” motif that’s matched with a dark grey dial. While aftermarket engraving has been applied to various Nautilus models in the past, this is the first factory-original specimen decorated in this manner.
Patek Philippe’s catalogue does include several complicated models decorated with engraving, most famously the Sky Moon Tourbillon ref. 6002, but they all complicated and in precious metal. This is the first and only Nautilus (or sports watch of any sort) with an engraved case, and also the only steel model with engraving.
The watch is accompanied by a pair of matching cufflinks in engraved steel, which are equally unique as Patek Philippe ordinarily only sells gold cufflinks.
The matching cufflinks ref. 205.9057A-010
The Nautilus Ref. 5711/1500A will be sold at the Children Action gala dinner in Geneva on November 25 with Aurel Bacs of Phillips conducting the auction. All of the proceeds from the watch, which will inevitably be several million francs, will go to Children Action. For more, visit Childrenaction.org.
Sotheby’s upcoming Geneva auction includes Treasures of Time, a small but impressive collection of watches consigned by a European gentleman of evidently sophisticated taste. While the most valuable of the 31 lots in the collection is a first-series ref. 2499 in pink gold, the most striking watch is arguably this Patek Philippe ref. 2499 third series with a glossy black dial featuring Breguet numerals.
Only six examples of the ref. 2499 are known to have a black dial, and this is one of them. The black dial with Breguet numerals gives the watch tremendous appeal and presence on the wrist.
Beautiful as it is, however, this ref. 2499 is not absolute perfect from a historical perspective as the black dial was added long after the watch was made.
The watch was originally sold by Patek Philippe in 1964, probably with the typical silver dial, and it gained this black dial sometime in the 1980s.
According to its well documented history, the owner of the watch in the 1980s was an important enough collector that when he asked for a black dial with Breguet numerals, Patek Philippe said yes. The dial was thus produced by Stern Frères and installed in the watch.
It’s worth noting that most of the six known ref. 2499s with a black dial have a similar history in that the black dials were subsequent additions.
Though it’s clearly not a vintage dial, Stern Frères executed it well. The dial is finished with a glossy black lacquer and gold powder print, while the indices are applied Breguet numerals in solid gold to match the hands and case.
This is not the only ref. 2499 with a black dial subsequently installed, but it is the only one known with Breguet numerals instead of batons. The numerals add a great deal to its charm.
As for the rest of the watch, it is in good condition. It’s clearly been serviced before, but treated finely and sympathetically so it retains much of its original appeal.
If I were the fortunate type of watch enthusiast who collected at this level, this ref. 2499 would be a top pick for an everyday watch. It is not certified perfect, but it possesses a special charisma when on the wrist. (But I would still set aside a few more million for a perfect watch with an archive-certified special dial).
This specimen was last sold publicly in November 2010 at Christie’s Geneva, where it achieved CHF579,000 including fees. On November 10, 2024, it will once again go under the hammer, this time at Sotheby’s in Geneva with an estimate of CHF1.0-3.0 million.
As a point of reference, a comparable ref. 2499 with a redone black dial (though originally with a black dial when it left the factory) sold in 2022 at Phillips for just under CHF1.2 million including fees.
One of the most significant examples of contemporary watchmaking, the F.P. Journe Tourbillon à Remontoir d’Egalité “15/93” will soon go on the block at Phillips. Consigned by the estate of the original owner – meaning it’s a one-owner watch for over three decades – the “15/93” prototype carries within it the magic of independent watchmaking to a degree that rivals the landmark timepieces like the George Daniels Space Traveller’s Watch.
The history of this tourbillon is well known: it is the second wristwatch made by François-Paul Journe, and the first one he sold. In early 1992 he sold it to a Parisian collector for a price that in hindsight is profoundly ridiculous, but was probably an extraordinary price to pay for a watch like this at the time.
The gentleman who bought it owned it for some 32 years and clearly wore it often. There is no doubt he understood what the watch represented, even years ago before it was valuable, because he retained all of the original documentation that came with the watch, including copies of the technical plans. To the late original owner of this watch: you have my respect and admiration.
Although I describe this as a prototype, it more accurately one specimen of a small series of hand-made watches. This series formed the template for the later Tourbillon à Remontoir d’Egalité that was produced on a larger scale, albeit only numbering in the dozens, initially by hand and then with more industrial methods when Francois-Paul Journe became a brand.
There are two other watches like this, the first example marked “11/91” that was retained by Mr Journe – arguably the true prototype – and today sits in the manufacture, and the final watch, marked “16/93”, which was sold to another collector.
The numbers refer to the sequence and year of production, so “15/93” is the 15th watch (both wrist and pocket) produced by Mr Journe and completed in 1993. No doubt convinced by the character of “11/91”, the original owner paid for this watch in 1992 and received it a year later.
Looking at “15/93”, it is clear that Mr Journe had a clarity of vision right from the beginning. Mr Journe related to me in the past that his tourbillon wristwatch was inspired by several historical greats that served as his role models, including Abraham-Louis Breguet, Ferdinand Berthoud, and little-known Swiss clockmaker Jost Bürgi. Their influence in obvious in the complications – Breguet for the tourbillon and Bürgi for the constant force – as well as the styling, which instantly evokes Breguet and Berthoud.
Most of the elements that would later go on to define this brand are in the watch, ranging from the gold dial, off-centre time display, and exposed screws.
The flat, 38 mm case is nearly identical in size to the later examples, though there are several differences, including a prominent step on the bezel, wider lugs, and screwed bars for the strap. The crown too is an ordinary shape, and not the narrow (and impractical) form that the brand would later adopt.
In the same manner the dial has the details that would later define the F.P. Journe aesthetic, but in a raw execution and with interesting details that wouldn’t make it into the serially produced watches.
The time indication is a silvered guilloche register secured by steel ring, while the tourbillon cock is polished steel, just like the later production watches. But the details are different, the steel ring has an angular outline, instead of the fluid silhouette adopted later on.
But the most notable differences is probably the dial, which is not actually a dial. It’s instead the the base plate of the movement.
The base plate and bridges are solid gold, so the yellow gold dial is the underside of the gold base plate, not unlike historical pocket watches. Later watches would have an actual gold dial, but not a visible base plate again until the recent Tourbillon Vertical.
The rounded cock for the remonotir blade would be found on the initial batch of serially produced tourbillon watches
Though Mr Journe migrated to brass bridges in the serially produced Tourbillon Remontoir d’Egalite, he finally returned to an all-gold movement construction in 2004, a feature that has become one of the defining features of the brand.
One of the intriguing details: a stop pin for the power reserve indicator
The tourbillon cage is inspired by Ernest Guinand
Although this is by far the most important F.P. Journe wristwatch to emerge at auction ever, Mr Journe, in his typical manner, has been publicly silent about it, perhaps not to tilt the scales. But he did give the watch a once-over so it has been verified by the maker.
Estimated “in excess of CHF2 million”, the F.P. Journe tourbillon prototype is lot 14 in Reloaded: The Rebirth of Mechanical Watchmaking, 1980-1999 taking place on November 8, 2024 in Geneva at the Hotel President. For more, visit Phillips.com.
