SOPHISTICATED SIMPLICITY
Watch manufacturer Patek Philippe produces extraordinary timepieces that are as efficient as they are elegant
The annual calendar mechanism, patented by Patek Philippe in 1996, is an illustration of one of the manufacturer’s ruling principles – any complication, no matter how sophisticated, must be easy to use.
The mechanism reduced the gap between the simplicity of the plain calendar (which needs adjusting five times a year) and the sophistication of the perpetual calendar (able to account for the lengths of all months, including leap years). On an annual calendar, the month, date and day of the week are displayed correctly for months with both 30 and 31 days, only requiring correction once a year on 1st March. The ease of use of this complication conceals great technical complexity.
Practical, readable and elegant, the annual calendar is acknowledged as a classic. It is offered in a variety of interpretations, each combining elegant lines, noble materials and lavish attention to finish.
A good example is the Ladies’ Annual Calendar Ref. 4948R. The rose gold case is set with 347 diamonds and features a stunning white Balinese mother-of-pearl dial, with gold applied numerals. It is the epitome of feminine finesse.
The compact 38mm case accommodates the self-winding mechanical movement, calibre 324 S QA LU, enriched by an ultra-precise moon phase, which takes 122 years to deviate from the lunar cycle by one day. The day and the month are displayed on central subsidiary dials at 10 and two o’clock, with the moon phases and date aperture placed at six o’clock.
This extraordinary timepiece, with its technical sophistication and fetching aesthetics, is worn on a matte pearly white hand-stitched alligator strap with a prong buckle in rose gold that is adorned with a further complement of 27 diamonds.
Patek Philippe upholds a tradition in complications that are useful in everyday situations, the annual calendar represents this exquisitely – it is an ingenious complication that is easy to operate.
To find out more about this collection and the Ref. 4948R please visit Patek Philippe’s authorised retailer, Leonard Dews in-store, or online: leonarddews.co.uk
Leonard Dews
18 Church Street
Blackpool, Lancashire FY1 1EW
01253 754974
leonarddews.co.uk
