Patek Philippe, Reference 2481, Tribute to Abd al-Aziz III ibn Saud, King of Saudi Arabia In 1953, after the death of Abd al-Aziz III ibn Saud (1880-1953), King of Saudi Arabia (1932-1953), Abdul Rahman Serour of Red Sea Trading, the Saudi Arabian representative of Patek Philippe, ordered a series of watches bearing the portrait of the deceased monarch from Patek Philippe, no doubt at the request of the court. Over a period of several years, Patek Philippe furnished nearly one hundred fifty wristwatches, reference 2481, and approximately two hundred pocket watches, reference 600 / 1, all in pink gold cases. They feature ivory coloured painted enamel dials with baguette and round cut ruby indexes; the portrait of King Abd al-Aziz III ibn Saoud as a young man is placed in the upper portion of the dial. To fill this commission, Patek Philippe first called on Geneva enameller Carlo Poluzzi (1899-1978), but he declined due to lack of time. The dials were therefore executed by Nelly Richard (1910-1998), Hélène May-Mercier (1912-1996), Michel Deville (1924-2003), Luce Chappaz (born in 1932) and Marguerite Koch (?-?). Noticing that a wristwatch of square-shaped, reference 2488, 10-200 calibre, with the effigy of the monarch, was made in 1951. Bibliography Huber, Martin, & Banbery, Alan, Patek Philippe Wristwatches, 1998, p. 160, ill. 245. Tellier, Arnaud, A"Roi d'Arabie sur émail A", in La Tribune des arts, No 309, mars 2003, p. 12.