1951 Patek Philippe 18K Calatrava Ref 570
About This Watch:
First introduced in 1932, the Patek Philippe Calatrava was designed by Henri Stern, after his father acquired the Patek Philippe brand. The first Calatrava, the Ref. 96, had a simple and elegant design which has been a flagship model for Patek Philippe ever since. The Calatrava Ref 570 was originally released in 1938, as an oversized companion to the original Calatrava, the Ref 96. With a 35.5mm case, the 570 shared the same design and movement as the Ref. 96, but in a larger case size that was growing in popularity for timepieces during the late 1930s.The History: Patek Philippe was first established in 1839 in Genéve Switzerland by Antoni Patek and Franciszek Czapek. Upon Czapek’s departure, Antoni was joined in 1845 by French watchmaker Adrien Philippe, who brought with him his version of the keyless winding mechanism. Producing timepieces worn by Queen Victoria, Patek introduced one of the first Swiss wristwatches in 1868, made for the Countess Koscowicz of Hungary. The company was acquired by the Stern family and remains one of the last family-owned independent watchmakers in Geneva.
The Watch: The Calatrava Ref 570 features a 35.5mm 18K Yellow Gold case, with a domed acrylic crystal. The silver dial features a sunburst pattern, with gold baton markers, dauphine-style hands, and a small seconds dial at the 6 o’clock position. This Calatrava Ref 570 is powered by the in-house Calibre 12-200 self-winding movement.
The Details: This Patek Philippe Calatrava Ref 570J is recently back from a full movement service from Patek. The case and case back show wear consistent with a timepiece of this age and is visible in the photographs. This timepiece comes with the Extract from the Archives, showing the production date of 1951, the original brown leather Patek Philippe case, service packaging, a leather Patek case from their service department, and a black alligator Patek Philippe strap with an 18K yellow gold pin-style Patek Philippe buckle.
