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Lot Essay
A formidable example of a first series reference 2497, this true collector's piece, of superb quality and rarity, will delight the future owner with its strong and generous case proportions, well defined stepped lugs and crisp hallmarks. The silvered dial, made by Stern Frères on a solid gold plate, is in very good overall condition. The two different series of reference 2497 are easily distinguished by their varying dial layouts: the first, such as the present watch, featuring applied Arabic and dot numerals and feuille hands, the second with applied baton numerals and dauphine hands.
Reference 2497 is without a doubt among the rarest, most attractive and important vintage complicated wristwatch models by Patek Philippe. It was in production from 1951 to 1964, and over these 14 years a meager 115 pieces were made in total. This means an incredibly low output of roughly 8 watches per year. It is powered by the 27SC Q movement, a perpetual calendar upgrade (Q stands for Quantième Perpétuel) of the best manually wound center seconds movement of the time: 27 SC (SC for Second au Centre). In fact, a specific movement number range was reserved for these movements: from 888’000 to 888’178. This means a total of 179 movements, 115 of them used for reference 2497 and the rest for its waterproof sister model, reference 2438/1.
The case of reference 2497 is a virtual carbon copy of the case of reference 2499, without of course the chronograph pushers. As with reference 2499, the case design presents an evolution over time. The first cases were made by Vichet (maker’s mark 9 in a key), the majority, such as the present watch were cased by Wenger, featuring a domed case back and slightly downturned lugs.
Examples of reference 2497 are illustrated in: Patek Philippe Wristwatches by M. Huber & A. Banbery, second edition, pp. 285 & 287, and in: Patek Philippe Museum - Patek Philippe Watches, Volume II, pp. 295.
Also illustrated in: the Blue Book 1, by Eric Tortella, 2018 edition, pp. 517-535
We are grateful to Eric Tortella for his assistance and study in researching this watch.
Reference 2497 is without a doubt among the rarest, most attractive and important vintage complicated wristwatch models by Patek Philippe. It was in production from 1951 to 1964, and over these 14 years a meager 115 pieces were made in total. This means an incredibly low output of roughly 8 watches per year. It is powered by the 27SC Q movement, a perpetual calendar upgrade (Q stands for Quantième Perpétuel) of the best manually wound center seconds movement of the time: 27 SC (SC for Second au Centre). In fact, a specific movement number range was reserved for these movements: from 888’000 to 888’178. This means a total of 179 movements, 115 of them used for reference 2497 and the rest for its waterproof sister model, reference 2438/1.
The case of reference 2497 is a virtual carbon copy of the case of reference 2499, without of course the chronograph pushers. As with reference 2499, the case design presents an evolution over time. The first cases were made by Vichet (maker’s mark 9 in a key), the majority, such as the present watch were cased by Wenger, featuring a domed case back and slightly downturned lugs.
Examples of reference 2497 are illustrated in: Patek Philippe Wristwatches by M. Huber & A. Banbery, second edition, pp. 285 & 287, and in: Patek Philippe Museum - Patek Philippe Watches, Volume II, pp. 295.
Also illustrated in: the Blue Book 1, by Eric Tortella, 2018 edition, pp. 517-535
We are grateful to Eric Tortella for his assistance and study in researching this watch.