Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar Split Seconds Chronograph 5004 (5004J-012)

On a first European visit in Milan from the 1st to the 4th of July 2009, the Patek Philippe Grand Exhibition displayed 250 timepieces including rare and legendary watches from the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva, Grand Complications from the Geneva watch manufacturer as well as its new 2009 collection.

 
After New York and Los Angeles in the spring of 2008 and Hong Kong and Shanghai in previous years, the Patek Philippe exhibition "The Values of a Family Watch Company" took place in Italy for its first European visit in the prestigious Palazzo della Ragione in Milan.

The press opening took place on June 30th in the presence of President Philippe Stern and Vice President and designated successor Thierry Stern and was attended by more than 80 members of the Italian press including 2 national TV channels. Public visiting days received more than 4'000 visitors.
Last independent watch manufacturer in Geneva, Patek Philippe has been in the hands of the Stern family for four generations. Since the purchase of the company in 1932, the Stern family has promoted the ten basic values that reflect the company's philosophy and inspired the exhibition: Independence, Innovation, Tradition, Quality and Workmanship, Rarity, Value, Aesthetics, Service, Emotion and Heritage.
The exhibition offers a journey through the past and the present of watchmaking. The 250 timepieces exhibited embody some of Patek Philippe's most beautiful creations and illustrate the shared passion of Philippe and Thierry Stern.

Rare and precious timepieces from the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva
The exhibition offers not only insights into the Geneva watch manufacturer but also a real journey through the history of watchmaking. Patek Philippe has devoted a large area of the exhibition to the many rare and precious timepieces from the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva which boasts more than 2,000 watches.
Exhibited among the rare museum pieces visitors where able to discover the famous Star Caliber 2000. This timepiece which hallmarked the new millennium features 21 of the rarest complications along with six patented innovations. Based on five centuries of watchmaking, it stands for the future of mechanical horology. Among the most complicated Patek Philippe timepieces ever, the Star Caliber ranks third, right behind the 'Caliber 89' and the 'Graves'.

Grand Complications and the Realm of the Exceptional
Patek Philippe has established itself as the undisputed leader of the supreme watchmaking art of Grand Complications - from ultra flat perpetual calendars to patented annual calendars, from classic chronographs to the most renowned World Time watches. The ultimate dream of watch collectors, this realm of the exceptional brings together the rarest and most complicated Patek Philippe timepieces, ingenious works of craftsmanship and miniaturization, as for example the tourbillon escapement watches or minute repeaters.
The exhibition offers visitors a unique opportunity to admire the largest collection of complicated watches in regular production and proposes an innovative film to experience the unique and much sought after sound of Patek Philippe minute repeaters.

The current collection enhanced with the new models introduced at Baselworld 2009
To grasp the very best of an era through shapes that go well beyond the fashions, to succeed in being both novel and eternal, modern and timeless - such are the challenges and the spirit that have always driven Patek Philippe through each of its creations. The company's designers have thus created legendary watches that have been established as great classics of elegance: pure simplicity for the round case of the Calatrava, Art Deco variations for the shaped Gondolo models, perfect balance for the Golden Ellipse, casual elegance and sports performance for the Nautilus and Aquanaut collections. The entire current collection was exhibited, along with the latest creations launched during the 2009 Baselworld Show.
To mark this exhibition an Italian language catalog was produced, covering the values of the last independent Geneva watch manufacturer and describing the precious timepieces brought together for the event.

Since 1839 and without interruption, Patek Philippe has evolved the traditional art of Geneva watchmaking. The independent watch manufacturer enjoys total creative freedom to design, develop and produce what specialists consider to be the most beautiful watches in the world. Patek Philippe nurtures a tradition of innovation which generated an impressive repertoire of more than 80 patents. To create its precious timepieces of classical design and intrinsic value to be passed on from one generation to the next, the watch manufacturer relies on leading-edge technology while preserving the tradition and ancestral know-how of watchmaking.