Launched in 1941, Patek Philippe’s Reference 1518 became the world’s first perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch produced in series. Between 1941 and 1954, only 281 pieces of this Reference 1518 were made, the majority of which were in yellow gold. What came after the Reference 1518 is the Reference 2499 and it is housed in a wider case with fluted lugs. … More
In the Far East, namely South-East Asia in particular, it comes as no surprise that Singapore is often the first choice when it comes to the establishment of a watch brand’s boutique in this region. German watch brand and Manufacture Glashütte Original for instance, opened its first South-East Asian boutique in Singapore towards the end of 2015. This is the … More
How large is the market in Asia for Swiss watch brands? Well, there is no doubting Asia’s importance as it is the biggest market for Swiss watch exporters, accounting for half of such exports in terms of value. In 2015, the total value of Swiss watch exports worldwide was CHF21.5 billion, representing a decline of 3.3%, according to the Federation … More
What is special about the Patek Philippe Ref. 4947 Annual Calendar watch for ladies? Well, the Ref. 4947 model has the touch of Patek Philippe designer Sandrine Stern. She is the wife of Thierry Stern, president of Patek Philippe. Sandrine Stern had reworked the annual calendar watches for ladies and what resulted is a more refined case and new Arabic … More
Introduced in 2015, the Patek Philippe Ref. 4947 Annual Calendar wristwatch features the brand’s Calibre 324 S QA LU self-winding movement. It features a bezel set with diamonds and there is a further line of diamonds lining the case band. The Patek Philippe Ref. 4947 comes in a 38mm diameter case and there are two versions: a rose gold version … More
What is the colour of the dial on Patek Philippe’s Ref. 7118/1 Ladies Automatic Nautilus? Is it blue and black or white and gold? Or dark blue and light blue? Well, this will surely not be a £50 question as the answer is pretty much straightforward and hopefully will not be accompanied with any complications. The answer is dark blue … More
In 2015, Patek Philippe created three one-of-a-kind dome table clocks to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Singapore’s independence (1965 to 2015). One of the dome clocks is the Ref. 1675M “Farquhar Collection” which takes its inspiration from the famed William Farquhar Collection of natural history drawings, as its name implies. William Farquhar (1774 to 1839) was the first British Resident … More
To appreciate the Patek Philippe Ref. 1665M “Peranakan Culture” dome table clock in cloisonné enamel, perhaps the first and most important question for the uninitiated is: what is a Peranakan? The term “Peranakan” is both a Malay and Indonesian word and it means “descendant” or “local-born” when translated to English. It is generally used to describe descendants of early Chinese … More
From Wednesday, 27 May 2015, to Sunday, 7 June 2015, the Saatchi Gallery in London is a must-visit for all who are interested in timepieces, notably fans and owners of Patek Philippe including those who wish to have an up-close-and personal view of the wristwatch belonging to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II – the Patek Philippe Ref. 4975 in white … More
No, there is no typo in the name and our apologies to fans of Tom Hanks and movie buffs, we are not referring to the gripping 2013 movie “Captain Phillips” based on the true story, notably of the 2009 hijacking of the US-flagged MV Maersk Alabama by Somali pirates which was commanded by Captain Richard Phillips. Hollywood actor Tom Hanks … More