📝 usncan Note: Phillips Offers Coveted No. 1 Stainless Steel Patek Philippe 1518
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The first Stainless Steel Patek Philippe 1518 with an estimate of CHF8 million – 16 million
Phillips
Phillips with Bacs & Russo will offer the first watch to break the $10 million price barrier: the stainless-steel Patek Philippe reference 1518.
Introduced in 1941, it was the world’s first perpetual calendar chronograph watch, Phillips auction house said in a statement. Believed to be one of only four known examples in steel, this watch last appeared on the market in November 2016 during the Phillips “Geneva Watch Auction: FOUR” auction, where it sold for more than CHF 11 million, which at the time was the most expensive watch sold at auction and the first to break the eight-figure barrier. It is still the most expensive vintage Patek Philippe watch ever sold at auction.
The stainless-steel Patek Philippe reference 1518 is one of the highlights of the upcoming Phillips “Decade One (2015-2025) Auction” in Geneva to be held November 8 and 9. Its estimate is CHF 8 million – 16 million ($9.9 million – $19.9 million).
“Just four stainless-steel Patek Philippe reference 1518s are publicly known today. Each one is extraordinary. This is the one that captured the world’s attention in 2016,” said Aurel Bacs, senior consultant, Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo. “It redefined the market and ushered in a new era in watch collecting. For seasoned collectors and newcomers alike, its return to auction marks a moment of rare opportunity.”
The Stainless Steel Patek Philippe 1518 stamped with case number 508’473, movement number 863’193 and the digit “1,” indicating this was the first steel 1518
Phillips
Patek Philippe’s Ref. 1518 was introduced during World War II. It was the first watch to combine a perpetual calendar with a chronograph, which the auction house said was “an extraordinary technical achievement at the time. The 1518 showed collectors that mechanical ambition and elegant design could coexist in a single wristwatch.”
Of the estimated 281 pieces produced, the vast majority were cased in 18k yellow gold, Phillips said. The 18k pink gold examples are widely sought after. However, the four stainless-steel 1518s are “reserved for the smallest elite of collectors,” according to the auction house, further describing the four stainless-steel models as “unicorns of the collecting world.”
The watch is offered in exceptional condition, preserved in line with the most exacting standards of connoisseurship, the auction house said. The 35mm steel case made by Georges Croisier houses a “beautifully preserved dial” by Stern Frères. It is stamped with case number 508’473 and movement number 863’193. Beneath the case number is the digit “1,” indicating that this was the first steel 1518.
The circular date display and moonphase of the No. 1 Stainless Steel Patek Philippe 1518
Phillips
It was manufactured in 1943, two years after the first 1518s were produced, confirmed by its extract from the archives, the auction house said. The watch was then sold to a retailer by the name of Joseph Lang in Budapest, Hungary, on February 22, 1944.
It is arguably the best known steel 1518 of them all – “not only for its wonderful condition, but because it’s the very watch that transformed the reference from an insider’s prize into a market-shaping icon,” the auction house said.
Alexandre Ghotbi, Deputy Chairman, Phillips, and Head of Watches, Europe & Middle East, said this watch paved the way for a series of headline-grabbing auction results, culminating with the $17.8 million paid for Paul Newman’s personal Rolex Daytona Ref. 6239 at Phillips in 2017.
“Collectors understand that this isn’t just a watch,” Ghotbi said. “It’s a benchmark. A collector’s item that transcends its category and belongs in the same conversation as a Ferrari 250 GTO or a Rothko.”
