Pocket Watches · Pocket watch
18ct yellow gold Patek Philippe open face chronograph pocketwatch, 1924
- Maker / attribution
- Patek Philippe (maker)
- Date
- 1924
- Historical period
- Golden Age of Mechanical Watchmaking (1900 – 1945)
- Country of origin
- Switzerland
- Object type
- Pocket watch
- Materials / technique
- yellow gold
- Dimensions
- Case 50 mm
- Stock no.
- G3284
- Credit line
- Dealer listing, Somlo Antiques (G3284)
- Catalogue title (original)
- 18ct yellow gold Patek Philippe open face chronograph pocketwatch. Made 1924 (English)
View the source record (dealer listing) ↗ (opens another website in a new tab)Suggest a correction
Record summary
Catalogued by Somlo Antiques (dealer), London (stock number G3284), this is a pocket watch by Patek Philippe, made in Switzerland, dated 1924. The Atlas places it in the Golden Age of Mechanical Watchmaking period (1900 – 1945) of its Pocket Watches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: yellow gold. Recorded dimensions: Case 50 mm. The record is illustrated with 4 photographs.
Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.
Catalogue description
Dealer description — Somlo Antiques
The establishment of Patek Philippe in 1839 can be linked to the Polish insurrection of 1830. Amidst the revolt against Russian rule, Antoine Norbert de Patek, a young cavalry officer, participated and, like many compatriots, was compelled to escape Poland, eventually finding refuge in Geneva. Swiftly immersing himself in the city's watchmaking industry, Patek, along with fellow Pole François Czapek, founded Patek Czapek & Co in 1839. In 1844, during a visit to Paris, Patek encountered the pioneering French watchmaker Adrien Philippe, who presented his innovative keyless winding and setting mechanism. Czapek opted to depart from the company in 1845, and Adrien Philippe stepped in as Patek's new partner. The company then underwent a name change to Patek & Cie before further evolving in 1851 to Patek Philippe & Cie. In 1932, the Stern brothers, Charles and Jean, acquired the company. Since that time, Patek Philippe S.A. has remained a family-owned enterprise, with the fourth generation currently guiding its path. Brand: Patek Philippe Made: 1924 Model: Pocketwatch Reference: Open face Calibre : 19''' Movement: Manual Material : 18ct yellow gold Features/complications : Open face Dial : White enamel dial featuring black printed outer minute track featuring Breguet numerals with a running seconds at 6 o'clock and elapsed minute counter at 12 o'clock and blue steel moon hands Case dimensions : 50mm Bracelet/Strap: N/A Accessories : Extract from the Archives SKU: 3284
Historical context
Golden Age of Mechanical Watchmaking (1900 – 1945)
The wristwatch displaces the pocket watch; waterproof cases, self-winding and grand complications.
The pocket watch reached technical maturity and then began to give way to the wristwatch after the First World War. Complicated watches for collectors such as Henry Graves Jr. and James Ward Packard, railroad watches, and slim Art Deco dress watches are characteristic.
Read the period in the timelineMore pocket watches from this periodEarlier: Industrial Revolution
Atlas type guide
Chronographs and split-seconds watches
A chronograph is a watch with an additional seconds hand that can be started, stopped and returned to zero independently of the timekeeping. Louis Moinet built an early example in 1816 and Nicolas Rieussec a recording 'chronographe' in 1821; Adolphe Nicole's heart-shaped reset cam (patented 1862) made the modern return-to-zero possible. Split-seconds (rattrapante) chronographs add a second hand that can be stopped for intermediate times; flyback chronographs restart instantly.
Chronographs were essential tools for doctors (pulsometer scales), artillery (telemeter), engineers and sport. In wristwatches, Valjoux, Venus, Lemania and later the automatic chronographs of 1969 (Zenith El Primero, the Chronomatic Calibre 11 group and Seiko 6139) are milestones.
What to look for
- Push-pieces on the case band or a single button in the crown (monopusher).
- Subsidiary registers for minutes and hours; tachymeter, telemeter or pulsometer scales.
- Column wheel versus cam control visible in the movement.
- Calibre markings of specialist makers (Valjoux, Lemania, Venus, Landeron).
Dating clues
- Pocket chronographs with heart cam reset: after 1862.
- Wrist chronographs: from c. 1910; two-button designs from the 1930s.
- Automatic chronographs: from 1969.
General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.
Read next:Flyback chronographChronograph
Related records
Clocks · 1965–1975
Quartz master clock QM 1, with movement by Patek Phillippe, Switzerland, 1965–1975. Supplied by English Clock Systems.
Science Museum Group, London
Instruments · 1965–1984
Chronometer by Patek Philippe and Kelvin Hughes, England, 1965–1984
Science Museum Group, London
Pocket Watches · c. 1895
Patek Philippe pocket watch, c. 1895
Antiquorum auction archive, Geneva
Pocket Watches · c. 1900
Patek Philippe Chronometro Gondolo, c. 1900
Antiquorum auction archive, Geneva
Pocket Watches · c. 1900
Pocket watch by A. Sandoz-Boucherin, Switzerland, c. 1900
German Clock Museum
Pocket Watches · 1900
Pocket watch by Armand Schwob & Frère, Switzerland, 1900
Science Museum Group, London
Pocket Watches · c. 1900
Pocket watch by Vve. Chs. Léon Schmid und Cie, Switzerland, c. 1900
German Clock Museum
Pocket Watches · 1900
Pocket watch by Zenith, Switzerland, 1900
Museum Rotterdam