Patek Philippe 570
Jumbo Calatrava "570" Rare 'Centre Seconds'

Introduced in 1938, the manually-wound Patek Philippe reference 570, nicknamed ‘Calatravone’ (large Calatrava) has been a favourite amongst collectors due to its large case, flat bezel, and modernist design. 

This iconic watch bears all the hallmarks of its classical archetype: applied gold diamond-cut hour markers (doubled at 12), clean and simple frosted silver dial with the company name in hard enamel (making it practically indelible), facetted gold dauphin hands, and unfussy flat bezel (in beautiful sharp condition).

This flawlessly tasteful design is also the vehicle for a number of technical improvements made by Patek over the earlier Calatrava, most especially its larger case (35.5mm) and centre-seconds. The latter has a particularly smooth sweep due to the in-house Patek calibre 27-SC, which has directly-driven seconds unlike other construction methods where centre seconds can be prone to 'flutter'. This solid calibre was also used as the base for the early Patek Philippe wrist perpetual calendars refs 2438 & 2497, named calibre 27-SCQ. Noteworthy technical refinements absent from lesser watches are the proprietary "pare-chute"-style shock absorber on the balance bearings, Breguet hairspring, and cap-jewels for the escape wheel pivots.

Solid 18ct yellow gold; case-back stamped by Patek's Geneva case-maker Antoine Gerlach. The watch is supplied on a new black Patek alligator strap with a more recent solid gold Patek Philippe buckle, dust-proof Patek crown and extract from the Patek Philippe archives confirming its date of sale as October 1958.