Patek Philippe Ref. 2499

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Patek Philippe watch

Photo: Courtesy Christie's

When it comes to grail watches, the Patek Philippe ref. 2499 is—in the watch collecting world— almost equivalent to owning the actual Holy Grail. The watch belongs to Patek Philippe’s incredible history of perpetual calendar chronographs and was produced between 1951 and 1985 in a limited number of approximately 349 timepieces. A 1968 rose-gold Patek Philippe ref. 2499 wristwatch was sold at Phillips’ Hong Kong Watch Auction in May 2016 for over $2.5 million. The starting estimate for this 37.7 mm, 1982 ref. 2499 is $350,000–$500,000. This important Patek Philippe model was created in a series of four versions, and this timepiece belongs to the fourth series, featuring round chronograph buttons with applied baton numerals and outer seconds divisions and sapphire crystal. Annually, an average of just nine reference 2499 timepieces left Patek Philippe’s workshop to be sold to clients.