Important Collectors Wristwatches, P...
New York, Dec 05, 2007
LOT 59
Yellow Gold Ref. 5050 Patek Philippe, Genève, No. 1957229, case No. 2961778, Ref. 5050. Made in 1997, sold on June 16, 1997. Very fine and rare, astronomic, center seconds, self-winding, 18K yellow gold wristwatch with perpetual calendar, retrograde date, leap year indication, moon phases and an 18K yellow gold Patek Philippe buckle. Accompanied by a winding fitted box, Certificate of Origin and a solid 18K yellow gold case back.
USD 50,000 - 70,000
EUR 35,000 - 50,000
Sold: USD 59,000
C. Three-body, solid, polished, concave bezel, fluted lugs, screwed-down transparent case back, sapphire crystals. D. Satiné silver with applied yellow gold baton indexes, apertures for the days of the week, the months, the moon phases and the leap year, retrograde sector for the date. Yellow gold feuille hands. M. Cal. 315/136, stamped with the Seal of Geneva quality mark, rhodium-plated, fausses côtes decoration, 31 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, Gyromax balance adjusted to heat, cold, isochronism and 5 positions, shock absorber, selfcompensating free-sprung flat balance spring. Dial, case and movement signed. Diam. 36 mm. Thickness 12 mm. Property of Various Owners
| Grading System | |
|---|---|
Grade: |
|
Case: 3-9 |
Good Scratched |
Movement: 2 |
Very good |
Dial: 1-01 |
As new HANDS Original |
Notes
Production of Ref. 5050 started in 1993 with the yellow gold version only. In 1995 Patek Philippe offered the full range for sale: yellow gold, white gold, pink gold, and platinum. Only one dial color, opaline gray, was available for the four different metals, but it was possible to choose between indexes or Roman numerals. This was the first Patek Philippe perpetual calendar wristwatch to feature a ?retrograde date?. In 1993/1995 when the reference was first shown, this complication went largely unnoticed. It was only when the watch was discontinued in 2001/2002 that it became a sought-after complication, by then widely used by other brands. This type of perpetual with retrograde date was subsequently used on the well-known minute repeater, Ref. 5016 (see lot 398). With the day and month visible in a small window, as well as the leap year indication, it was the successor to Ref. 3450 (see lot 394), and like 3450, was produced in very small quantities.