18ct yellow gold Patek Philippe ref. 3495 'oversized' Calatrava wristwatch, retailed by TIFFANY. Made 1964

Patek Czapek & Co was founded with a fellow Pole, François Czapek in 1839. Then in 1844 Patek met the French watchmaker, Adrien Philippe in Paris where the latter presented his pioneering keyless winding and setting mechanism. Czapek decided to leave the company in 1845 and Adrien Philippe replaced Czapek as Patek’s partner. The company then changed its name to Patek & Cie.before changing once more in 1851 to Patek Philippe & Cie.

In 1932, the company was purchased by two brothers Charles and Jean Stern and since then, Patek Philippe S.A. remains a family-owned firm, with the 4th generation at its head.

Today, vintage Patek Philippe is a titan in the vintage luxury watch community. Their obsessive attention to detail combined with ground-breaking feats such as the first serially produced, perpetual calendar wristwatches as well as the first split-second chronograph wristwatch, have made Patek Philippe wristwatches and pocket watches some of the most sought after in the world.

The partnership between Patek Philippe and Tiffany & Co. began in 1851 when Antione Norbert de Patek visited Charles Lewis Tiffany in his flagship store in New York.

Both Antoine Norbert de Patek and Charles Lewis Tiffany discovered a they both had a common respect for each other’s merchandise and after a simple handshake the watchmaker and jeweller entered into a strategic partnership and commitment which still exists until today.