It is wonderful to note that a Swiss watchmaker as revered as Patek Philippe pays an inordinate amount of attention to ladies’ watches, an often-overlooked category in serious watchmaking. Alongside a trove of revamped Nautilus iterations in rose gold and diamond-set stainless steel for women, Patek Philippe also presented, at the 2019 Baselworld fair, a delightful trio of haute joaillerie wristwatches, exemplifying the height of elegance and femininity.
CALATRAVA HAUTE JOAILLERIE REF. 4899/901G
For this showstopper, Patek unleashes its technical and artistic know-how to achieve the finest example of a high jewellery watch. Ultra refined and feminine, Ref. 4899 was first launched in 2017 in a soothing pink hue, replete with white gold, engraved mother-of-pearl, and precious stones. This year’s serene blue version is no less luminous, if not more.
A soft, rounded white gold case of 35.8 mm provides an unassuming canvas on which to set rows upon rows of brilliant-cut diamonds. These are interjected with blue sapphires, also in brilliant cut, of different hue gradations. On the lower portion of the dial are more diamonds and sapphires, but which are now set in random fashion, often referred to as “snow-setting.” The upper part of the dial displays a hand-engraved feather motif in gentle shades of blue.
Putting its handcraftsmanship to the utmost test, the white gold leaf-shaped hour and minute hands come finely engraved. More diamonds and blue sapphires are called upon to decorate the crown and prong buckle. In total, a final count of 702 precious stones — 348 diamonds (1.66 ct) and 354 blue sapphires (2.69 ct) — embellish the timepiece.
This story is from the WOW Jewellery 2019 edition of WOW Singapore.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the WOW Jewellery 2019 edition of WOW Singapore.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Hand-Finished Ceramic
Once thought impossible, Blancpain demonstrates how to bring handcraftsmanship to ceramic cases and bracelets with the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Quantième Complet Phases de lune 5054
Quanta Of Time
Just as hours, minutes and seconds are quanta of time, so too are days, weeks, months and years. We finally explore the story of the perpetual calendar in particular, in a year that invites such ruminations
Twice Upon A Time
The world's greatest double tourbillon wristwatch, the Breguet Classique 5345 Quai de L'horloge is back, with new hand-finishing touches
Coming In Thin
Bvigari’s releases for 2024 continue to stun the watch world with its trail-blazing innovation and sublime artistry
Light The Night
Luminox celebrates 35 years of existence by drawing on its heritage in the realms of the air, land and sea
New Frontiers
The outgoing CEO of TAG Heuer Julien Tornare shares his management style and values. No doubt these will remain consistent in his new role as Hublot CEO, just as they were in his Zenith tenure
Delighting To Surprise
Tissot CEO Sylvain Dolla weighs in on the novelties of 2024
Machine Learning
The mechanical calendar has been perfected over the last 100 years; it remains a challenge that invites multiple watchmaking and engineering approaches. We get into the nuts and bolts of how the perpetual calendar gets the job done
Expedition Hublot
A peek into the manufacture at Hublot reveals the amount of intricacies and technology behind the often quirky watches
STRUCTURAL STYLE
Parmigiani Fleurier CEO Guido Terreni explains the logic of the new Toric collection and takes us through his thoughts on style and elegance