PATEK PHILIPPE. A RARE AND FRESH TO THE MARKET 18K GOLD AUTOMATIC PERPETUAL CALENDAR WRISTWATCH WITH MOON PHASES
PATEK PHILIPPE. A RARE AND FRESH TO THE MARKET 18K GOLD AUTOMATIC PERPETUAL CALENDAR WRISTWATCH WITH MOON PHASES
PATEK PHILIPPE. A RARE AND FRESH TO THE MARKET 18K GOLD AUTOMATIC PERPETUAL CALENDAR WRISTWATCH WITH MOON PHASES
1 More
PATEK PHILIPPE. A RARE AND FRESH TO THE MARKET 18K GOLD AUTOMATIC PERPETUAL CALENDAR WRISTWATCH WITH MOON PHASES
4 More
This lot is subject to standard Swiss VAT rules an… Read more PATEK PHILIPPE PERPETUAL CALENDAR MOON PHASES REF. 3448THE PROPERTY OF AN AMERICAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR
PATEK PHILIPPE. A RARE AND FRESH TO THE MARKET 18K GOLD AUTOMATIC PERPETUAL CALENDAR WRISTWATCH WITH MOON PHASES

SIGNED PATEK PHILIPPE, GENEVE, REF. 3448, MOVEMENT NO. 1'119’215, CASE NO. 328’490, CIRCA 1971

Details
PATEK PHILIPPE. A RARE AND FRESH TO THE MARKET 18K GOLD AUTOMATIC PERPETUAL CALENDAR WRISTWATCH WITH MOON PHASES
SIGNED PATEK PHILIPPE, GENEVE, REF. 3448, MOVEMENT NO. 1'119’215, CASE NO. 328’490, CIRCA 1971
Movement: Cal. 27-460 Q, manual
Dial: Silvered
Case: 37.5 mm. diam.
Remark: Fresh to the market, exceptionally crisp case and correct 1971-1972 ‘pre-aprior’ dial
Literature
Reference 3448 is illustrated in: ‘Patek Philippe Wristwatches’, Martin Huber & Alan Banbery, second edition, p. 288, and in: ‘Ore d'Oro’, Jader Barracca, Giampiero Negretti and Franco Nencini, p. 45.
Special notice
This lot is subject to standard Swiss VAT rules and 7.7% VAT will be charged on the ‘hammer’ and the ‘buyer’s premium’

Brought to you by

Remi Guillemin
Remi Guillemin Head of Watches, Europe and Americas

Lot Essay

Consigned from an American private owner, this entirely fresh to the market reference 3448 in yellow gold is simply spectacular. It first impresses with its completely untouched beautifully preserved dial and exceptionally sharp and crisp case. Hardly if ever polished, it retains full proportions and a wonderful overall honesty and originality. Furthermore, being made in 1971, the dial is one of the very last to be only marked ‘Swiss’ before the introduction of the flanking ‘Aprior’ symbols. It is also one of very few dials to feature this type of ‘tumbling date’ (days of the month around the moon-phases) where the numerals in the lower half are not reversed. With perfectly crisp and clear signature, the beady minute divisions perfectly complement the gold baton hour markers. The superb original silky finish is a feature of the very best dials made by Stern Frères, called ‘satiné opalin’. The 18K gold case is in similarly original condition with clearly legible hallmarks and superbly sharp, well-defined edges.

This formidable example of a reference 3448 will impress even the most exacting purist collector with its superb and rare 1971-72 dial type and those who appreciate untouched honesty in one of the great Patek Philippe references more than 50 years after it was made.


Reference 3448

Reference 3448, introduced into the market in 1962, was at the time the first self-winding perpetual calendar wristwatch. According to literature, a total of 586 examples were made, the majority in yellow gold cases. Only around 130 were cased in white gold, 2 in platinum and 1 in pink gold are known to exist to date.

Reference 3448 was fitted with the celebrated caliber 27-460, amongst the most sophisticated and lavish automatic movements ever made. It was later upgraded with Patek Philippe's patented perpetual mechanism fitted on the movement plate underneath the dial and renamed 27-460 Q.

Reference 3448 was available with four different dial styles:

-enamelled small baton minute divisions from 1962 to circa 1965
-beady minute divisions and small date ring from 1965 to circa 1973
-beady minute divisions and large date ring: 1971 to circa 1978
-printed, not enamelled small baton minute divisions: after 1978

In 1981, reference 3450 was introduced into the market with the improved 27'460 QB (Quantime Bissextile) caliber. The model differs from its predecessor by the modified leap year indication, the eccentric small window to 4 o'clock.

With the launch of reference 3940 in 1985, production of both references 3448 and 3450 was discontinued.

More from Rare Watches : Featuring The Kairos Collection Part I

View All
View All