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Lot Essay
Highly coveted by collectors, the reference 3700/1 was designed by Gerald Genta, one of the most celebrated designers of the 20th century. Launched at the Basel fair on the 3rd of March 1976, the timepiece shocked the prevailing school of thought were luxury timepieces had to be cased of gold and of conservative size. Named Nautilus in honor of Captain Nemo’s submersible craft from Jules Verne’s novel Twenty Thousand Leagues under the sea, the timepiece soon questioned the very nature of what constituted the value of a watch, as it no longer had to be made of precious metal and its value could be judged by factors such as workmanship, style, fitness for purpose and brand association.
Manufactured from 1976, the Reference 3700/1 was assembled with the caliber 28-225, considered as part of the greatest calibers produced. Based on the Jaeger-LeCoultre caliber 920 of 1967, it was regarded as one of the most beautiful and refined automatic movements ever manufactured, and corresponded perfectly to the Nautilus timepiece through its elegance and slim nature.
Created by Stern Frères, the dial of the reference 3700/1 was entirely handmade and had to be painted alternately in black and blue color and later sprayed with a ‘Zapon’ varnish finish. The indexes and hands were made of gold and filled with luminescent material. At 6 0’clock, the Swiss script was flanked on each side by the ‘Aprior’ mark of two sigma symbols, recognized as the mark applied on dials made of solid gold or at least crafted with solid gold indexes.
The cases of the reference 3700/1 were crafted by Favre-Perret SA until 1981, when production was transferred to Patek Philippe's own Aterliers Reunis workshops. Comprising of two parts, the bezel and the main body, each were separated by a rubber seal compressing when subject to increased water pressure and therefore forming a highly efficient watertight seal.
Manufactured from 1976, the Reference 3700/1 was assembled with the caliber 28-225, considered as part of the greatest calibers produced. Based on the Jaeger-LeCoultre caliber 920 of 1967, it was regarded as one of the most beautiful and refined automatic movements ever manufactured, and corresponded perfectly to the Nautilus timepiece through its elegance and slim nature.
Created by Stern Frères, the dial of the reference 3700/1 was entirely handmade and had to be painted alternately in black and blue color and later sprayed with a ‘Zapon’ varnish finish. The indexes and hands were made of gold and filled with luminescent material. At 6 0’clock, the Swiss script was flanked on each side by the ‘Aprior’ mark of two sigma symbols, recognized as the mark applied on dials made of solid gold or at least crafted with solid gold indexes.
The cases of the reference 3700/1 were crafted by Favre-Perret SA until 1981, when production was transferred to Patek Philippe's own Aterliers Reunis workshops. Comprising of two parts, the bezel and the main body, each were separated by a rubber seal compressing when subject to increased water pressure and therefore forming a highly efficient watertight seal.