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Lot Essay
It is always exciting when an exceptional complicated watch by Patek Philippe returns to the market after many years. The classical elegance of the design of the present watch belies its highly complicated nature and extreme rarity among Patek Philippe’s production.
Even in a world where the wristwatch reigns supreme, complicated pocket watches particularly those made by Patek Philippe remain a source of fascination. The quest for timekeeping accuracy and technical complexity backed up by incredible mathematical and mechanical genius is how Patek Philippe built and cemented its reputation as the ultimate watchmaking house from the late 19th century to the present day.
Timepieces such as the present watch were true marvels of the age, often taking months or even years to complete, they cost a small fortune. Then as now, Patek Philippe watches were coveted trophies, the ownership of which conveyed an individual’s good taste and success to other cognoscenti.
Patek Philippe made only a very small number of watches with equation of time function, and the present watch, movement no. 80’772, is thought to be unique - the only example with a central equation of time hand. At any given moment, so-called mean solar time deviates by a few minutes from true, or apparent, solar time. This difference is referred to as the equation of time. It varies from day to day and in mechanical watches can be displayed with the aid of a highly complex cam mechanism.
Incredibly rare, a total of only eight Patek Philippe pocket watches up to and including the Graves ‘Supercomplication’ are known to exist with equation of time feature:
24'919 - sold to Pena, Madrid on 31 May 1865, equation table on the back
24'920 - exhibited in Paris in 1867, small equation sector
27'116 - sold to Pena, Madrid in 1867, equation sector
47'887 - sold on 20 February 1879, small equation sector concentric to the moon phases
80'772 – the present watch, gold ‘sun’ equation hand concentric with the minute hand traversing between 45 min. to 15 min.
111'505 - sold to Mrs. Bradford, made in 1898
198'023 – for James Ward Packard. Patek Philippe's most complicated watch at the time
198'385 – the Henry Graves ‘Supercomplication’ sold in 1933
Equation of Time
The equation of time in astronomy is the quantity that needs to be added or subtracted to switch from real time given by the sun, to the mean time; our time, which arbitrarily divided a day in 24 hours. The equation of time varies from one day to another, its value swings between around -16 to +16 minutes per day. By cumulating these differences, we obtain a variation between the real noon and the mean noon of more or less 15 minutes. The most important differences are, function of the years, toward February 12 (+14 minutes and 59 seconds) and November 3 (-16 minutes and 15 seconds). The difference is zero toward 15 April, 15 June, 1 September and 24 December. Today, due to the summer time and the winter time, we live with a difference of two or three hours relative to the sun; our daily noon corresponding to the solar noon of Central Europe.
The equation of time also gives information about the equinoxes of spring (21 - 22 March) and autumn (22 - 23 September), as well as the solstices of summer (toward 21 June) and winter (toward 21 December). The equinox is the moment when the sun is on the plane of the equator, thus leading to days equal to nights. The solstice is the moment when the sun is in the farthest position from the equator, resulting in the longest day and the longest night. These dates determine the seasons of the year.
Even in a world where the wristwatch reigns supreme, complicated pocket watches particularly those made by Patek Philippe remain a source of fascination. The quest for timekeeping accuracy and technical complexity backed up by incredible mathematical and mechanical genius is how Patek Philippe built and cemented its reputation as the ultimate watchmaking house from the late 19th century to the present day.
Timepieces such as the present watch were true marvels of the age, often taking months or even years to complete, they cost a small fortune. Then as now, Patek Philippe watches were coveted trophies, the ownership of which conveyed an individual’s good taste and success to other cognoscenti.
Patek Philippe made only a very small number of watches with equation of time function, and the present watch, movement no. 80’772, is thought to be unique - the only example with a central equation of time hand. At any given moment, so-called mean solar time deviates by a few minutes from true, or apparent, solar time. This difference is referred to as the equation of time. It varies from day to day and in mechanical watches can be displayed with the aid of a highly complex cam mechanism.
Incredibly rare, a total of only eight Patek Philippe pocket watches up to and including the Graves ‘Supercomplication’ are known to exist with equation of time feature:
24'919 - sold to Pena, Madrid on 31 May 1865, equation table on the back
24'920 - exhibited in Paris in 1867, small equation sector
27'116 - sold to Pena, Madrid in 1867, equation sector
47'887 - sold on 20 February 1879, small equation sector concentric to the moon phases
80'772 – the present watch, gold ‘sun’ equation hand concentric with the minute hand traversing between 45 min. to 15 min.
111'505 - sold to Mrs. Bradford, made in 1898
198'023 – for James Ward Packard. Patek Philippe's most complicated watch at the time
198'385 – the Henry Graves ‘Supercomplication’ sold in 1933
Equation of Time
The equation of time in astronomy is the quantity that needs to be added or subtracted to switch from real time given by the sun, to the mean time; our time, which arbitrarily divided a day in 24 hours. The equation of time varies from one day to another, its value swings between around -16 to +16 minutes per day. By cumulating these differences, we obtain a variation between the real noon and the mean noon of more or less 15 minutes. The most important differences are, function of the years, toward February 12 (+14 minutes and 59 seconds) and November 3 (-16 minutes and 15 seconds). The difference is zero toward 15 April, 15 June, 1 September and 24 December. Today, due to the summer time and the winter time, we live with a difference of two or three hours relative to the sun; our daily noon corresponding to the solar noon of Central Europe.
The equation of time also gives information about the equinoxes of spring (21 - 22 March) and autumn (22 - 23 September), as well as the solstices of summer (toward 21 June) and winter (toward 21 December). The equinox is the moment when the sun is on the plane of the equator, thus leading to days equal to nights. The solstice is the moment when the sun is in the farthest position from the equator, resulting in the longest day and the longest night. These dates determine the seasons of the year.