Horology_Ancienne
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Some thoughts on Patek clocks
A most commendable facet of Patek Philippe’s personality is a stubborn-like insistence on maintaining and creating in the sphere of forgotten arts. I occasionally find myself entangled in parleys concerning to what extent a balance between the spheres business and passion exists at the esteemed Maison. While it would be terribly naive of me to dream them up as some sort of great benefactor of horology, it also would be ignorant to suggest they’re a profit churning machine with only balance sheets in mind. I won’t labour the point too much but I’d like to give a personal anecdote to attest to the concept of passion with significant disregard to monetary gain. When I started collecting, my eye was first caught by a tourbillon pocket watch at the Geneva salon. Following the acquisition I was almost immediately drawn to lovely paintings, brought to life by the hands of masters, adorning pocket watch cases. Today such pieces don’t collect dust on shelves in the back of the salon. They’re immediately gobbled up by discerning collectors. The late 90s was a different world in which the same fervour for special pocket watches we see today simply didn’t exist.
This ‘predicament’ was also extended to clocks. However Patek was insistent to not allow these treasured arts to disappear from contemporary production. For this they have my gratitude. It paid off handsomely too, which meant either they had the most gifted of foresights, or there was a strong element of passion that dictated production. Pocket watches, Dome clocks, desk clocks and the likes exist in today’s offerings because Patek refused to let them die against all odds. There was a point when rectangular, square and wall clocks evaporated from modern production. A raised eyebrow of concern quickly relaxed following the introduction of round table clocks (such as the 25003M ‘Singapore’). Creativity with respect to the past is very much alive. There are many reasons why Patek remains my favourite watchmaker. As a fairly enthusiastic collector of clocks, this is absolutely one of them.
The present clock, reference 1100 from the 1970s, features red-brown gold brushed panels.
Some thoughts on Patek clocks
Thanks for this nice post, HA, and for highlighting one of the great but less obvious achievements of this unique brand -- its (and its leadership's) unwavering commitment to the preservations of the rare/forgotten arts.
Awesome that you have the collection of rare handcrafts books.
