Patek Philippe

Amongst manufacturers, Patek Philippe has a long history. On May 1st, 1839 two Polish immigrants, Antoine Norbert de Patek (Salesman) and François Czapek (Watchmaker) joined forces to found "Patek, Czapek & Cie". They separated in 1844, and in 1845 Patek joined with the French watchmaker Adrien Philippe, inventor of the keyless winding mechanism. In 1851, Patek Philippe & Co was founded. In 1868, Patek Philippe made their first wristwatch. They have also pioneered the perpetual calendar, split-seconds hand, chronograph, and minute repeater in watches. The company, like other Swiss manufactures, produces mostly mechanical movements of the automatic and manual wind variety, but has produced quartz watches in the past and even a digital wrist watch, the Ref. 3414. PP is notable for manufacturing its own watch components. Patek Philippe timepieces have recorded high closing prices in auctions worldwide. A large part of the demand for auction pieces is driven by Patek Philippe themselves, as they are often purchasing in the auction market to add to the collection of the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva.