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Lot Essay
Accompanied by the original Patek Philippe box, certificate, envelope and an Extract from the Archives confirming the date of manufacture as 1972 and its subsequent sale on March 9th of the same year. The certificate is dated 14-3-1972 and stamped for the retailer, Alvild Dahl v Ole Mathiesen located in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Patek Philippe introduced the reference 3448 to the market in 1962. At the time this model represented the first self-winding perpetual calendar wristwatch ever to be produced. According to literature, a total of only 586 examples were made, the majority in yellow gold cases. Few watches have been cased in white gold and only two examples in platinum are known to date.
The 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 calendar mechanism fitted on the movement plate underneath the dial and renamed 27-460Q.
In 1981, the reference 3450 was debuted with the improved 27-460 QB (Quantieme Bissextile) caliber. The model differs from its predecessor with the addition of the leap year indication in the eccentric small round aperture at four o'clock. The first series was made with a red disc and Arabic numerals and the second series with the Roman I, II, III and IIII leap year indication. A total of 244 examples of the reference 3450 were produced, the majority in yellow gold cases with only two white gold examples known at present.
Production of both the references 3448 and 3450 was discontinued in 1985 when Patek Philippe launched the reference 3940.
The rarity of the present example is further enhanced by the good overall condition and the fact that it still retains the original certificate, certificate envelope and box.
Also, the stamp on the original certificate for the retailer, Ole Mathiesen, helps to detail the excellent provenance of this piece. Mathieson stands as a three-generation enterprise and one of the most famous retailers of Northern Europe. The firm remains active to this day, having been founded approximately 100 years ago.
For a similar example of the reference 3448 see Hubery & Banbery, Patek Philippe Wristwatches, Volume 2, Second Edition, p. 288; and in Barracca, Negretti and Nencini, Ore d'Oro, p. 45.
Patek Philippe introduced the reference 3448 to the market in 1962. At the time this model represented the first self-winding perpetual calendar wristwatch ever to be produced. According to literature, a total of only 586 examples were made, the majority in yellow gold cases. Few watches have been cased in white gold and only two examples in platinum are known to date.
The 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 calendar mechanism fitted on the movement plate underneath the dial and renamed 27-460Q.
In 1981, the reference 3450 was debuted with the improved 27-460 QB (Quantieme Bissextile) caliber. The model differs from its predecessor with the addition of the leap year indication in the eccentric small round aperture at four o'clock. The first series was made with a red disc and Arabic numerals and the second series with the Roman I, II, III and IIII leap year indication. A total of 244 examples of the reference 3450 were produced, the majority in yellow gold cases with only two white gold examples known at present.
Production of both the references 3448 and 3450 was discontinued in 1985 when Patek Philippe launched the reference 3940.
The rarity of the present example is further enhanced by the good overall condition and the fact that it still retains the original certificate, certificate envelope and box.
Also, the stamp on the original certificate for the retailer, Ole Mathiesen, helps to detail the excellent provenance of this piece. Mathieson stands as a three-generation enterprise and one of the most famous retailers of Northern Europe. The firm remains active to this day, having been founded approximately 100 years ago.
For a similar example of the reference 3448 see Hubery & Banbery, Patek Philippe Wristwatches, Volume 2, Second Edition, p. 288; and in Barracca, Negretti and Nencini, Ore d'Oro, p. 45.