59 Patek Philippe A highly attractive and extremely rare, perpetual calendar, moon phases, retrograde date and leap year indication automatic wristwatch in yellow gold, with black Breguet numbers dial, certificate of origin and solid caseback, reference 5050J.

Estimate: € 100.000 –⁠ 200.000

Few references embody the discreet opulence and mechanical poetry of Patek Philippe as completely as the 5050. Introduced in 1993, it marked a quiet revolution: the Maison’s very first perpetual calendar with retrograde date and center seconds. A rare and thoughtful complication, housed in an elegantly proportioned case, it was a statement not of showmanship but of substance. The present example, reference 5050J-024, elevates an already important reference to an entirely different level. The rich black dial—arguably the rarest and most arresting of all configurations—is adorned with applied Breguet numerals and matching hands. It is a dial variant that whispers of tradition yet feels timelessly contemporary, and it is precisely this restraint that collectors so deeply admire. Preserved in wonderful condition and sold in 2008 to a distinguished collector, the watch comes complete with its certificate, a detail as important as the watch itself in today’s collecting landscape. Of all the iterations of the 5050, this one with Breguet numerals and subsidiary moon phase strikes a near-perfect balance between technical innovation and visual harmony. It is not simply a timekeeper, it is a quiet testimony to Patek Philippe’s ability to craft enduring icons—not for the moment, but for eternity.