Patek Philippe

Patek Philippe launched the reference 5205 in 2015 as a scaled-down 40 mm version of the beautiful and popular Annual Calendar Chronograph Ref. 5960, which had been in production since 2006, but with a dial that featured fewer complications. Compared to the Ref. 5960, the dial of the Ref. 5905 has lost the power reserve indicator and the double chronograph counter, but has gained a moonphase and an integrated 24-hour hand for the day/night display. The result is a charismatic dial with an arched arrangement of the calendar display. In fact, this arc-shaped design in an annual calendar watch was a major move by Patek Philippe which the company had already made before the Ref. 5960, in 2004, when the Gondolo Calendario Ref. 5135 appeared with a cushion-shaped case and a new, arc-shaped arrangement of the month, day of the week and date in three windows at the top of the dial. For complex calendar watches, including the annual calendar, it is not usual to move the most important calendar indicators to the edge of the dial, thus freeing up its center. It is precisely this partially empty center that gives the Ref. 5205 its charisma. The Annual Calendar Ref. 5205 has a refined, round 40 mm case and a dial in the strictly “scientific” (sectoral) Art Deco style that was originally introduced in the 1930s. This gave the watch the image of a technical timepiece, without the excessive luxury of Patek Philippe’s more complex mechanical models. The popularity of this design is reflected in the availability of different versions. In addition to the two versions that Patek Philippe currently offers in the catalog – Ref. 5205R-011 and Ref. 5205G-013, the brand has, as far as we know, released four other versions of this model, in rose or white gold and with black, white or grey dials. All of them have a strong look, but among this powerful team, one version stands out in particular, namely Ref. 5205G-016, which has a particular look with its white metal case and orange-pink “salmon” dial, characteristic of some rare and sought-after Patek Philippe models. As far as we know, this Annual Calendar Ref. 5205G-016 with salmon-colored dial from the limited edition of 15 pieces has never appeared on the market and remains virtually unknown to connoisseurs and collectors.