Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo will present an unprecedented trio of Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 timepieces at the Decade One (2015-2025) thematic auction.
The Phillips Watches department celebrates its tenth birthday this year and the anniversary auction takes place 8–9 November 2025 at the Hotel President in Geneva.
It is the first time, that the stainless steel, pink-on-pink, and yellow gold examples of the world’s first serially produced perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch will appear in the same auction.
In November 2016, Phillips sold examples in all three case metals in the same auction, but now a ‘pink-on-pink’ 1518 has also appeared alongside the stainless steel and yellow gold models. We visited the preview back then – please see it here.
Launched in 1941, the Ref. 1518 set the blueprint for every perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch that followed. With just 281 made across all metals – and only four known in stainless steel – this trio represents one of the rarest gatherings in watch auction history.
Patek Philippe I Ref. 1518, Stainless Steel, 1943. Estimate: CHF 8,000,000 – 16,000,000
One of only four known, this was the very first steel 1518 ever produced, indicated by the number one engraved on the caseback. When last sold by Phillips in November 2016, it achieved CHF 11,002,000 (with premium), becoming the most expensive wristwatch ever sold at auction at the time and the first to break the eight-figure barrier. Now the piece is back.
Patek Philippe I Ref. 1518, 18k Pink Gold, ‘Pink-on-Pink’, 1947. Estimate: CHF 1,200,000 – 2,400,000
A pink gold case paired with a matching ‘pink’, salmon-hued dial – approximately 15 examples of the ‘pink-on-pink’ 1518 are known – we saw one in the OAK collection, back in 2022. The Ref. 1518 in pink gold was most frequently fitted with a silvered dial (like this lot from last year), only in rare instances was a matching pink dial paired with the warm case metal.
Patek Philippe I Ref. 1518, 18k Yellow Gold, Circa 1945. Estimate: CHF 200,000 – 400,000
The classic expression of the Ref. 1518. Cased in 18k yellow gold and fully serviced by Patek Philippe in 2025, this watch represents the 1518 in its most emblematic form.
The Decade One (2015-2025) anniversary auction also features the first is the Naissance d’Une Montre 3, a unique, brand-new stainless-steel wristwatch created entirely by hand by the team at Ferdinand Berthoud, with proceeds supporting the preservation of watchmaking craft. We covered this exceptional timepiece here.
Source: press release. Photo credits: Phillips Watches.
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