Beauty and brains: Patek Philippe

Patek Philippe’s Grand Complication timepieces for women blend sophisticated functionality and ultimate elegance

Watches & Jewellery 26 Oct 2022

Ladies’ First Perpetual Calendar by Patek Philippe

Ladies’ First Perpetual Calendar by Patek Philippe

How apt it is of Patek Philippe to elevate women’s watches through the inclusion of haute horlogerie complications. History tells us that the first wristwatches were made for women, and there is no questioning the claim to that title by a watch Patek Philippe produced in 1868 for Countess Koscowicz of Hungary. Patek Philippe’s historic understanding of what female clients want means it has always been in tune with the increasingly sophisticated demographic that now demands as much of wristwatches as male watch enthusiasts do.

There have been ladies’ watches featuring dual time zones, moon phase, an annual calendar, various chronographs, a perpetual calendar, a universal time model, and combinations of two or more complications, proving emphatically that 21st-century female clients demand more than just gem-setting, precious metals or pastel straps.

Emblematic of these is a model from Patek Philippe’s Grand Complication collection, the Ladies First Perpetual Calendar launched in 2012 in rose gold (Ref. 7140R-001), and in a white gold edition in 2017 (Ref. 7140G-001), both priced at £82,860. The Ladies First Perpetual Calendar oozes functionality in that its legibility is not compromised by the plethora of data it displays, while its look remains sumptuous in the manner of the finest jewellery.

Representing the larger size preferred by contemporary watch enthusiasts, the Ladies First Perpetual Calendar’s rose or white gold case, water-resistant to 30m, measures a substantial 35.1mm in diameter yet is a mere 8.7mm thick. The case features an interchangeable full back and sapphire-crystal back, for those who wish to view the movement.

Patek gives prominence to the hours and minutes displays with the main hands running conventionally from the centre. Large Arabic numerals for 1, 2, 4, 8, 10, 11, and 12 are applied to the dial in the same material as the case, against a silvery white, opaline background. Minutes and hours are also indicated by applied gold dots. All other functions, including day, date, month, and moon phase, are contained in three subdials at 3, 6, and 9 o’clock.

Powered by the ultra-thin in-house Calibre 240Q automatic movement, the watch can accommodate months with 31, 30 and 28 days, and February 29 in leap years thanks to its mechanical “memory” of four years, or 1,461 days.

Elegance, however, has not been sacrificed. The bezel is set with 68 diamonds, for a total of approximately 0.68ct, while the gold prong buckle is set with 27 diamonds of approximately 0.2 ct. Both watches are fitted with a choice of shiny, hand-stitched alligator straps with square scales, in complementary colours. The Countess would approve.

Patek Philippe Salon, 16 New Bond Street, London, W1S 3SU; patek.com