The Watchmaker's Watch: Antiquorum Offers Rare Patek Phillipe Ref. 1463 Made and Owned by Jacques Golay
A steel Patek Philippe Ref. 1463 with asthmometer dial, the only one known, is up for auction at Geneva Antiquorum on November 11. An exceptionally rare model featuring a round button chronograph, 30-minute register, respirations scale and a Patek Philippe stainless steel buckle, this watch was the personal property of Jacques Golay, a famous and highly respected Patek Philippe régleur (a highly skilled watchmaker).
According to Jules Golay, his father Jacques finished this watch whilst working in the atelier of Fils de Victorin-Piguet, part of the Patek Philippe group of companies.
Although the movement of the watch is numbered 868889, the case is itself is un-numbered but bears the 1463 reference number, Patek Philippe signature and the usual case marks. The un-numbered case is a result of Golay making and finishing the watch for himself, not preparing the watch for the usual sale process. This may also account for the perhaps unique combination of asthmometer dial and steel case. The watch’s interesting history is detailed in a letter from his son Jules, which is included with this lot.
The asthmometer scale gives the dial a very unusual and visually dramatic appearance, leaving a large blank space in the upper left-hand quarter. The case features crisp and sharp angles and demonstrates almost no signs of wear. “The ‘respirations’ or asthmometer dial is very rare in this reference,” said Evan Zimmermann, President and CEO of Antiquorum. “There’s only one other reference known with this dial – a pink gold example that was sold by Antiquorum, Geneva, October 4th, 2009.”
“This is an exceptionally fine and unique watch,” said Julien Schaerer, Watch Expert and Managing Director, Antiquorum Geneva. “The uniqueness of the features alone makes this Patek Philippe ref. 1463 a treasure for any watch enthusiast, but the fact that it was made and worn by Jacques Golay, probably the most famous régleur of all time, makes it even more valuable.”
Jacques Golay was awarded the Guillaume prize in 1941 for obtaining the best accurate timekeeping between his watch and the Le Coultre & Cie tourbillon regulator N°34748.
About Antiquorum: Established in Geneva in 1974, Antiquorum has carved its own unparalleled niche in the auction world through its focused expertise in horology and by cultivating a thriving collector’s market for timepieces worldwide. The world’s premier auctioneer of fine modern and vintage timepieces has set world records for auction sales and holds approximately ten auctions a year in Geneva, New York and Hong Kong, with previews held in major cities worldwide. Antiquorum maintains offices in Beijing, London, Milan, Munich, Moscow, Paris, Shanghai and Tokyo. www.antiquorum.com
