Pocket Watches · Pocket watch
18ct yellow gold Patek Philippe Open face pocket watch with enamel scene on case, 1913
- Maker / attribution
- Patek Philippe (maker)
- Date
- 1913
- Historical period
- Golden Age of Mechanical Watchmaking (1900 – 1945)
- Country of origin
- Switzerland
- Object type
- Pocket watch
- Materials / technique
- yellow gold
- Dimensions
- Case 32 mm
- Stock no.
- G3476
- Credit line
- Dealer listing, Somlo Antiques (G3476)
- Catalogue title (original)
- 18ct yellow gold Patek Philippe Open face pocket watch with enamel scene on case. Made 1913 (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by Somlo Antiques (dealer), London (stock number G3476), this is a pocket watch by Patek Philippe, made in Switzerland, dated 1913. 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 32 mm. The record is illustrated with 2 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
For decades, pocket watches were the main stage on which Patek Philippe demonstrated its skills. Even though wristwatches have taken their place, they still delight connoisseurs of rare timepieces. As the guardian of high-end watchmaking artistry, the manufacture continues to craft pocket watches in small numbers. Their aesthetic finesse remains a source of fascination. These timepieces with manually wound movements are produced in compliance with the strict directives of the Patek Philippe Seal, as regards both artisan-ship and rate accuracy. Today, vintage Patek Philippe is a titan in the vintage luxury watch community. Their obsessive attention to detail combined with ground-breaking feats such as the first serially produced, perpetual calendar wristwatches as well as the first split-second chronograph wristwatch, have made Patek Philippe wristwatches and pocket watches some of the most sought after in the world. Brand: Patek Philippe Made: 1913 Model: Pocket watch Reference: - Calibre: 12''' Movement: Manual Material: 18ct yellow gold Features/complications: Case enameled with scene commemorating the "Tir Cantonal du Centenaire, Genève, 1814 - 1914" Dial: White dial with white outer minute track and Arabic numerals featuring Louis XVI hands and subsidary seconds dial at 6 o'clock Case dimensions: 32mm Bracelet/strap: N/A Accessories: Extract from the Archives SKU: 3476
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
Hunter, half-hunter and open-face watches
In the nineteenth century the pocket watch case settled into a few standard forms. The hunter (French savonnette) has a hinged front lid protecting the crystal — reputedly for riders who could not risk broken glass — and is opened by pressing the crown or a push-piece. The half-hunter has a small window in the lid so the hands can be read when closed. The open-face (lépine) watch has no front cover, with the crown at 12; hunters normally carry the crown at 3.
Case types also changed with winding: key-wound watches gave way to keyless (stem-wound) mechanisms after Adrien Philippe's and others' designs of the 1840s, with pendant setting or lever setting.
What to look for
- Crown position relative to the seconds dial: at 3 for hunters, at 12 for open-face watches.
- Spring-loaded front cover with a push-piece in the pendant.
- Half-hunter chapter ring enamelled on the lid.
- Key holes in the inner dome (cuvette) versus keyless winding.
Dating clues
- Keyless winding spread after c. 1850 and became standard by c. 1890.
- English hallmarks inside gold and silver cases give the year of assay.
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:Detached lever escapement
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