Lot 3

Adrien Philippe's Keyless Winding and Setting System Until the mid-19th century, pocket watches were wound and set with a key fitted into holes either in the case or dial. Through these holes, dirt could penetrate the movements or the keys were lost. For nearly 250 years, watchmakers had not found a practical solution to these problems. In the early 1840s, Adrien Philippe introduced special features no other watchmaker could offer, thus stimulating the newly created firm's business. His invention was initially greeted with skepticism by fellow watchmakers. The breakthrough finally came at the Paris Exhibition of 1844 in form of a gold medal for his very slim stem-wound watches displayed and, perhaps even more importantly, making the acquaintance of Antoine Norbert de Patek who immediately recognized Adrien Philippe's visionary system as much more than just another technical gimmick. Patek already had several years of experience with the sale of stem-wound watches, produced by Patek & Czapek with Louis Audemars' system since 1839. Adrien Philippe's invention of the modern winding and setting stem and crown (pull out to set, push in to wind), French patent No. 1317 of 1845, was more than a clever mechanism. It changed the nature of watches and allowed the evolution from the keyless watch to today's waterproof wristwatch. Philippe continued the development and perfection of crown and stem winding and setting for almost 20 years. By the time he filed his final patent on the matter in France in 1861 (as the only official patent office was in Paris at that time), the first had already expired and his idea was in current use. Adrien Philippe had wished that his invention would be "applicable to all types of watches" and indeed, his system is used to this day in timepieces that he would probably never have imagined: self-winding and ultra-thin wristwatches, quartz watches, diver's watches.

Patek Philippe. A rare and early 18K gold hunter case keyless lever watch with Adrien Philippe's early stem winding and setting mechanism

SIGNED INVENTION BREVETÉE DE PATEK PHILIPPE & CO. À GENÈVE, NO. 8604, MANUFACTURED IN 1853

Details

Patek Philippe. A rare and early 18K gold hunter case keyless lever watch with Adrien Philippe's early stem winding and setting mechanism
Signed Invention Brevetée de Patek Philippe & Co. à Genève, No. 8604, manufactured in 1853
Cal. 19''' gilt-finished jewelled lever movement, large bimetallic compensation balance, wolf's tooth winding, gold cuvette with engine-turned border, white enamel dial, Roman numerals, eccentric subsidiary seconds, engine-turned circular case, ribbed band, case numbered, cuvette signed and numbered, movement numbered underneath the dial
46.5 mm. diam.

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John Reardon

jreardon@christies.com +1 212 636 2360

Lot Essay

With Patek Philippe Extract from the Archives confirming production of the present watch with enamel dial, subsidiary seconds and guilloché case back in 1853 and its subsequent sale on 29 January 1856.

This fine example of Patek Philippe's early production featuring Adrien Philippe's ground breaking invention of the crown winding system is preserved in remarkably good condition for its age, witnessing the outstanding quality of the manufacturer's watches, one of the firm's trademarks then as now. It has furthermore never been offered in public before.

Other examples of Patek Philippe's early stem-winding watches engraved Invention Brevetée (patented invention) on the cuvette are illustrated and described in Patek Philippe Museum - Patek Philippe Watches - Volume I, pp. 56, 57 & 58.

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