Patek Philippe Supercomplication - the most complicated pocket watch in the world
Share
The Patek Philippe “Supercomplication” – one of the most legendary watches in the world
When you talk about the Patek Philippe Supercomplication , you most likely mean the “Henry Graves Jr. Supercomplication” , which is considered one of the most complicated and expensive mechanical pocket watches in the world .
Here is a thorough, well-structured explanation of this legendary watch:
Origin story
- Client: Henry Graves Jr. – a wealthy US banker from New York and avid watch collector.
- Manufacturer: Patek Philippe & Co., Geneva.
- Order placed: 1925
- Completion: 1932
- Production time: 8 years (3 years design work, 5 years manufacturing)
Graves commissioned them in a friendly sporting competition with automobile magnate James Ward Packard to see who would own the “most complicated watch in the world”.
Technical masterpiece
- Total complications: 24 (!)
- Caliber: Completely hand-built, unique movement with 920 individual parts
- Case: 18 karat gold (i.e., not a mass-produced item, all custom-made)
Key features include:
- Hours, minutes, seconds (dual time display)
- Minute repeater (striking mechanism for hours, quarter hours, minutes)
- Perpetual calendar with moon phase and leap year indicator
- Sky map of New York, showing starrise, starset and sidereal time
- Sunrise/sunset indicators
- Chronograph (Split‑Seconds / Rattrapante)
- Reserve indicator (power reserve)
- Thermometer, alarm function, equation of time, day of the week and month display
Dimensions & Data
| feature | Value |
|---|---|
| diameter | approx. 74 mm |
| thickness | approx. 36 mm |
| Weight | approximately 535 grams |
| Number of components | 920 (plus approx. 430 screws) |
Historical significance and auction results
- After Graves' death (1953), the clock remained in the family's possession for decades.
- In 1999 it was auctioned at Sotheby's for around 11 million US dollars – at the time a world record for a watch.
- In 2014, it was sold again at Sotheby's Geneva and fetched CHF 23.2 million (approx. USD 24 million) – to date one of the highest prices ever paid for a watch.
Meaning
This watch is not only a technical marvel, but is considered a symbol of human watchmaking and the possibilities of pure mechanics – created long before computer calculations or CAD systems.
It was the most complicated watch in the world for over 50 years, until Patek Philippe introduced its anniversary model Calibre 89 (33 complications) in 1989.
Source: Bing, AI
