In-Depth: Patek Philippe Grand Complication with Double Split-Chronographs Ref. 767
One of the most fascinating timepieces in Phillips’ upcoming Hong Kong auction is the Patek Philippe grand complication pocket watch ref. 767. Made in 1950 and sold in 1952, this one-of-a-kind pocket watch boasts a minute repeater, perpetual calendar, and double split-seconds chronograph. More accurately, it is a mono-pusher, double split-seconds, or even triple-split seconds. This ref. 767 features not two, but three, chronograph seconds hands. As a result, it can simultaneously measure three elapsed times of up to one minute. The complication is possibly unique amongst Patek Philippe watches. A historically significant watch in itself, this ref. 767 also has notable provenance: it once belonged to Seth Atwood, the American industrialist who founded the now-closed Time Museum. According to Philips, this ref. 767 was Atwood’s everyday watch, not surprising since he was a legendary collector of his day with a collection that included the Patek Philippe Graves Supercomplication and the Duc d’Orléans Breguet Sympathique. Three seconds hands, two in blued steel and one in gold Initial thoughts I’ve been impressed by many pocket watches – some that come to include a Patek Philippe observatory tourbillon and the Philippe Dufour Grande Sonnerie – but I’ve rarely been surprised. This ref. 767 was, however, entirely unexpected. When it was first described to me, I was confused and immediately thought of the Lange Double Split. But as it turns out, this is entirely d...
Quill & Pad
