Part of just 1000 pieces, this time-only 6007A/001 Calatrava was introduced in 2019 in celebration of Patek Philippe's new manufacture, which opened in the same year. Building on the design principles introduced with the 5212A Weekly Calendar, the dial features an unusual, metallic blueish-grey hue, modern proportions, and font. Powered by the classic in-house calibre 324 SC, the watch retains its traditional roots even as it looks toward the future. More unusually, this is one of the few examples sold through Tiffany & Co, including corresponding paperwork along with the retailer's iconic bright light blue outer box.
A VISUAL GUIDE TO RARE CALATRAVAS
The Calatrava is often used as a byword for time-only dress watches by Patek Philippe, and while not known as such at the time, the Patek Philippe reference 96 would come to represent the archetype not just for a line that would come to be known as the Calatrava, but of understated dress watches in general.
Produced between 1932 and 1973, the Patek Philippe reference 96 was expressed through a wide variety of dial configurations, featuring no seconds, subsidiary seconds, and offset subsidiary seconds as well as centre seconds (thanks to a clever redesign of the 12’”120’s sub seconds incorporating an additional mechanism by Victorin Piguet that gave it its ‘indirect central seconds’ name). It has featured indices of all varieties – Arabic, Breguet, Roman, and precious stone – not to mention hands from dauphine and baton to pencil and leaf-style.
The success of the Ref. 96 resulted in a family of references all closely linked to the design of the original. The Ref. 570 was released in 1938; although an upsized rendition featuring a case measuring 35.5mm across, it is an example most enthusiasts agree closely follows the original formula. The Ref. 2457’s dimensions make it an even more faithful descendant of the Ref. 96. John Nagayama, a Japan-based watch dealer specialising in vintage Patek Philippe, also points to others such as the diminutive 28mm Ref. 437 and 438, and others such as the Ref. 2508, 2509, 2545 (32mm), 2555 (31mm) and 3439 (32mm), as examples of typical Calatrava models. John Reardon, Founder of Collectability, thinks others such as the 3796 and 3919 and more recent references like the 5196 also make the cut. Others wager that references such as the 5026, with its flat bezel and subsidiary seconds register, albeit offset, also fall within the historical parameters of a Calatrava.
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