On the occasion of the 10th edition of the Only Watch charity auction held on the 10th of May 2024 at the Palexpo in Geneva, a one-of-a-kind Patek Philippe ref. 6301A Grand et Petite Sonnerie, Minute Repeater, has been unveiled by the Maison.
The Patek Philippe 1938P
For the occasion, many maisons had announced and produced unique pieces to be sold at auction in November last year. The postponement of the event, however, disrupted the plans of some of them, who, due to timing issues, had to launch the presented timepiece regardless. These maisons include Patek Philippe, which had announced the ref. 1938P in tribute to the President Philippe Stern.
After the announcement of the postponement until a later date, Patek decided to proceed with the production and sale of the reference 1938P, which, being linked to Philippe Stern’s 85th birthday, certainly could not be postponed.
Patek Philippe ref. 6301A
Once ref. 1938P had been produced, it was absolutely necessary to think of a new unique piece to present. The announcement came within weeks of the auction date and left the entire watchmaking world speechless.
For the occasion Patek Philippe came up with the amazing reference 6301, large and small chime and minute repeater. However, compared with the traditional ref. 6301P we have some fundamental changes.
First of all, the usual 44.8 mm diameter and 12.03 thick platinum case has been replaced by a less valuable but much rarer steel one of the same dimensions. In fact, we all know that steel configurations of Patek Philippe’s complications are a true Holy Grail of watchmaking, and most likely, in Patek Philippe they wanted to continue in this direction by presenting a similar unique piece.
The other most important differences are found instead on the dial. The traditional black Grand Feu enamel of ref. 6301P has been replaced in this new ref. 6301A by an incredible Rare Handcrafts dial in Grand Feu enamel embellished with a stunning hand guillochè with a swirling pattern. A very similar solution to that used for ref. 5178G but with a less bright blue-green color.
Also on the dial, the hour markers have changed. The applied gold Breguet numerals have been replaced by a set of baguette-cut diamonds with over-the-top elegance.
In the power reserve indicators at 9 and 3 o’clock we find the inscriptions “Only” and “One,” respectively, accentuating the fact that this is an incredible one-of-a-kind piece made exclusively for Only Watch.
Finally, rotating the watch we find a final treat on the sapphire crystal case back. Indeed, above it is an elegant metalized cursive inscription that reads “Only Watch 2024.”
From the case back you can also admire the manual GS 36-750 PS IRM caliber. A jaw-dropping engineering masterpiece equipped with the functions of large and small chime, minute repeater with three gongs, small jumping seconds at 6 o’clock, time reserve, and chime power reserve. Respectively, the two power reserves amount to 72h and 24h.
The estimate for the Patek Philippe 6301A according to Only Watch is 1,500,000 to 1,800,000 CHF which is roughly equivalent to the same amount in EUR.
Auction Result
The day of the auction, this Patek Philippe 6301P “Only One” has annihilated its original estimate, selling for the staggering amount of 15.7 million CHF or roughly 16 million USD.
Final Thoughts
Although this is not a completely new reference as the 1938P might have been, Patek Philippe has created a timepiece with incredible appeal thanks to the combination of a stunning set of baguette diamonds for the hour markers, the gorgeous Rare Handcrafts dial, and a dreamy sonnerie, minute repeater caliber.
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