Perpetual Calendar Preferences: A Collector's Guide to the Best Complications

Key Points from the Discussion

• The Ulysse Nardin Perpetual Calendar stands out for its unique ability to be set both forwards and backwards via the crown, a significant advancement in user-friendliness compared to many other perpetual calendars that require specialized tools or manufacturer intervention for adjustments.
• Some perpetual calendars, like certain JLC and IWC models, incorporate apertures for the year, decade, century, and millennium, offering a comprehensive time display, though century and millennium changes often require manual adjustment by a watchmaker.
• The Andersen Geneve Secular Perpetual Calendar is noted for its audacious and ingenious design, displaying correct calendar information for 400 years via a dial on the watch's reverse side.
• The Patek Philippe Ref. 3940 is frequently cited as a classic and aesthetically pleasing perpetual calendar, particularly when considering models without additional complications.
• The H. Moser & Cie. Perpetual Calendar is highly regarded for its clean dial and superior legibility, often preferred by collectors who prioritize ease of reading the date and other calendar information.
• The JLC Master Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar Ref. 1308470 is praised for its synchronized one-button setting mechanism, simplifying moon phase adjustments, and its inclusion of a year display within a 39mm case, often considered an accessible entry into perpetual calendars.