Introduction to Patek Philippe Grand Complications
Grand complications are the most sophisticated and complex horological works of art and mechanics. Considered the pinnacle of watchmaking, they can take years to develop. And it can take a year for a single watchmaker to build the most intricate versions with hundreds, sometimes thousands, of tiny components in its heart. A complication is considered any watch function that goes beyond simply indicating the time. Some complications are more sophisticated and difficult to create. A grand complication is a watch that consists of several of the most coveted complications in one watch.
Patek Philippe Grand Complications History and Cultural Significance
Patek Philippe has long been a leader in the realm of grand complications. The brand built its first grand complication watch back in 1898, which it later sold to Stephen S. Palmer. It was a pocket watch that incorporated a grand and petite sonnerie, perpetual calendar and split-seconds chronograph. Back then, there were no CNC machines to mill the metal and no CAD systems to help with designs. Everything was done by hand, and it is estimated that the watch took several years to build. In 2013, the pink gold watch, still in top-notch condition, made its way to Christie’s New York auction of Important Watches — where it sold for more than $2.25 million.
During the early 20th century, two important Americans actually vied to own the most complicated watch in the world. James Ward Packard and Henry Graves Jr. regularly requested the highest complicated timepieces from Patek Philippe and also Vacheron Constantin. Graves ordered his first Patek Philippe Grand Complication watch in 1910, and six years later, Packard ordered his. From then on, a competition arose. That competition forced Patek Philippe to accelerate its handmade watchmaking game — eventually propelling it to stardom as a legendary maker of grand complications.
Since those early days, Patek Philippe has continually accelerated its watchmaking skills and embraced technology. Today, it has one of the most extensive lines of grand complication watches. Patek Philippe has held the top spot for the most complicated watch in the world time and again (although sometimes forfeiting that claim to its longtime rival, Vacheron Constantin).
Patek Philippe Astronomical Watches
Patek Philippe truly excels in the astronomical watch arena. One of the first of this type of wristwatch, the Sky Moon Tourbillon (Reference 6002G), debuted in 2001 and rocked the watch world. It was chocked with 12 complications — a record number at the time. The mechanical movement offers perpetual calendar with retrograde date, hours and minutes of the mean solar time, day, month, leap year and moon phases. On the reverse side are a sky chart, sidereal time, phase and orbit of the moon. Recently the brand added a new white gold version to its repertoire.
The Celestial Moon Age is another magnificent watch whose dial offers a rotating chart of the heavenly bodies, including the movement of the stars and orbit and phases of the moon, in the Northern Hemisphere. Collectors consider the sky chart to be one of the most beautiful ever made.
Patek Philippe Grand Complication Variations
While a split-seconds chronograph, perpetual calendar or minute repeater in and of themselves are difficult to create and are therefore considered premier complications, Patek Philippe goes out of its way to combine these pinnacles under one roof. The Reference 5303R combines a minute repeater with tourbillon, while the Minute Repeater Ultra-Complication (Reference 5207G) brings together the minute repeater, tourbillon and perpetual calendar.
Patek Philippe’s Most Complicated Grand Complication
Easily the most complicated watch Patek Philippe has made to date is the Grandmaster Chime. It features two independent dials, a reversible case, six patented innovations and 20 complications. The Reference 5175 in rose gold was created for the brand’s 175th anniversary in 2014, and only seven pieces were made. The mechanical movement consists of 1,366 parts, and the case was built using 214 components.
In 2019, Patek Philippe created a one-of-a-kind Grandmaster Chime in stainless steel that it donated to the Only Watch auction that year. It sold for 31 million Swiss francs. Proceeds from the auction benefit the Monaco Association Against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Since then, Patek Philippe added the Reference 6300G in white gold with blue opaline dials to its lineup. Among the complications: second time zone, day, date, month, leap year and two patented world firsts for the five chiming modes of the repeater.
Patek Philippe’s Recently Released Grand Complications
In 2020 alone, despite the global pandemic and its manufacture being closed for several months, Patek Philippe unveiled three Grand Complication watches — an unprecedented number. The Minute Repeater Tourbillon Reference 5303R debuted at the brand’s Watch Art Grand Exhibition Singapore 2019, but in 2020, Patek Philippe released a new version. The highly alluring watch features an open worked architecture that allows for viewing of the minute repeater mechanism’s hammers and gongs on the dial side. The manually wound watch is part of the brand’s current offering, though there is a waiting list for anyone hoping to have one built.
Another 2020 introduction that has collectors clamoring is the Reference 5270J, which combines perpetual calendar with chronograph functions. The manually wound mechanical movement, caliber CH 29-535 PS Q, boasts six patented innovations. It offers day, date, month, leap year and day/night display as well as an instantaneous 30-minute counter and a central chronograph hand. A tachymeter scale resides on the outer chapter ring of the dial. This watch is coveted because it is being created in 18-karat yellow gold, a rarity these days.
Pricing and Value of Patek Philippe Grand Complications
As mentioned, there is a long waiting list for Patek Philippe grand complication watches, and most people will never get to the top of the list. It takes years to create these fine mechanical masterpieces, and watchmakers spend months assembling a single movement. Prices of these watches are naturally among the most expensive on the market, typically commanding upwards of $500,000, as with the Reference 5303R, and higher.