As an ardent watch collector myself, I‘m constantly scouring specialist forums and journals to stay informed on the latest happenings in luxury watch auctions. Back in 2019, my attention fixated on the increasing fervor around that year‘s Only Watch charity auction hosted in Geneva, Switzerland. Only Watch gathers unique timepieces donated by over 50 high-end manufacturers to support Duchenne muscular dystrophy research. The biennial event draws feverish bidding excitement. But 2019‘s auction results stunned the entire watch community when we witnessed Patek Philippe absolutely shatter all previous sale records with their showstopping Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A-010 luxury watch.
Overview: Inside the $31.1 Million Patek Philippe Watch
So what compelled one anonymous bidder to pay an astronomical $31.1 million (31 million CHF) for this seemingly simple time-telling device? In short–flawless Swiss craftsmanship elevated to an art form, housed inside a unique stainless steel frame never before seen on a Patek Philippe watch of such epic complexity.
Let‘s rewind a bit to understand whywatch experts consider Patek Philippe the industry gold standard. Founded in 1839, the revered Genevan manufacture retains family ownership today across 4 generations–a rarity that upholds its heritage. Renowned for high watchmaking complications, the brand concentrates tradition and technology into timepieces so remarkable, they transcend any notion of "luxury goods" as mere possessions. For discerning collectors, Patek Philippe creates heirlooms that hold emotional resonance through flawless intricacy.
Given that background, Patek‘s Grandmaster Chime collection represented the apex of those watchmaking ideals. First introduced in 2014 for their 175th anniversary, the Grandmaster Chime boasted 20 complications with a total of 1,366 movement parts. Before then, horologists never imagined so many sonnerie functions unified in a single functional wristwatch.
But the 2019 Only Watch auction unveiled the Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A-010–a version pioneering in both technical and aesthetic significance. It featured the first-ever stainless steel case on a Patek Philippe watch this complex. However, stainless steel normally serves watches far more pedestrian than a Grandmaster Chime. So why choose common steel over precious gold or platinum?
By selecting an industrial metal as the stage for their mechanical virtuosity, Patek Philippe deliberately played with contrasting opposites. The juxtaposition simultaneously highlighted the precise handiwork while also demonstrating remarkable resilience similar to how the Only Watch auction showed resilience against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. As a material dichotomy, the steel unexpectedly amplified beauty behind the 1,366 microscopic parts ticking flawlessly in unison. The Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A-010 indeed proved alone in its kind–proudly inscribed "The Only One" in reverse text on the matte black dial.
I‘ll elaborate on the different factors contributing to this watch entering the record books. But first, let‘s ogle at what exactly $31 million buys in cutting-edge mechanical watch prowess.
Watch Specifications: An Understated Powerhouse
Reference: Grandmaster Chime 6300A-010
Year: 2019
Case Material: Stainless Steel
Dimensions: 47.7mm diameter x 16.07mm thickness
Movement Type: Mechanical, manual-winding
Complications: 60 hour power reserve
Price: $31.1 million (~31 million Swiss francs)
Glancing at the Grandmaster Chime, you notice an elegant yet sporty stainless case with810 decorative baguette diamonds totaling ~8.2 carats ornamenting the bezel and lugs. Two inset dials display contrasting finishes–a vertical brushed treatment on the silvery rectangular face indicating hours and minutes vs. a shiny circular ebony dial tracking the perpetual calendar and astronomical functions.
While embodying discretely stylish versatility at first sight, Within lurks the paramount of mechanical complications taking 5 years for Patek Philippe to perfect. Let‘s open the Grandmaster Chime‘s hood and take a peek at what $31 million procures in precise innovation.
Movement Architecture: A Symphonic Masterpiece
The caliber GS AL 36-750 QIS FUS IRM movement dazzles as a mechanical orchestral conductor made miniature. Consisting of 1,366 microscopic pieces, the 21,600 semi-oscillations per hour animate 20 unique complications all functioning harmoniously thanks to Patek Philippe‘s single-piece monocoque chassis construction:
Timekeeping Complications
- Hour/minute hand
- Seconds hand
- Second time zone display
- Day/night indicator
- 60 hour power reserve
Strikework Complications
- Grande sonnerie (hour & quarter strikes)
- Petite sonnerie (hour strikes)
- Minute repeater (on demand)
- Strikework mode display (silence/grande sonnerie/petite sonnerie)
- Alarm with time strike
Calendar Complications
- Dual-sided (recto/verso) displays
- Instantaneous perpetual calendar
- Date by hand
- Day
- Month
- Leap year cycle
- Four-digit year display
- Twenty-four hour display
While seemingly congested, the fantastically executed layout feels balanced. Breguet hour markers circle silvery engines driving 60 hours of optimal power. Two subtle pushers at 8 and 10 o‘clock set the second time zone while windows above each declare AM or PM. Peering past 3‘o clock, a moonphase indicator references cloud phases drifting past our solar companion. Opposite at 9 o‘clock, an aperture toggles between Strike (chimes), Grande (big chimes) and Petite (small chimes) strikework modes.
Flipping the case exposes the grand calendar with rotating periphery. A sapphire disc occupying center stage tracks the full date around four digits indicating the year 2082. Pointers above and below call out the month, day and leap year resting on the black rotating bezel.
You‘ll notice all indications shift precisely and instantaneously thanks to Patek Philippe‘s patented actuating lever/spring system requiring no physicaleffort.
While the graphics impress, the sonic capacity steals the show.
The Science of Sensational Chimes
While traditionally signaling time audibly brought much convenience, today such musical alerts seem archaic necessities from a bygone era. However, revived inmodern contexts like Patek Philippe‘s Grandmaster Chime, mechanical minute repeaters and sonneries enthrall aficionados. The genteel elegance consummating high watchmaking heritage makes traditional chimes invaluable cultural treasures.
Through precise acoustic theater, the Grandmaster Chime channels time‘s poetryin song form. Activating the strikework animation launches a graceful waltz as rotating cams strum meticulously tuned steel Cathedral Gong gongs in sequences indicating the time down to the minute. The different durations, frequencies and timbres across treble, bass and mid-range tones chime intelligibly in three categories:
Hour Strike: Low single strike tones
Quarter Strike: Higher double strike tones
Minute Strike: Highest triple strike tones
When activated via slide pusher, the Grandmaster Chime‘s melodic narration relays captivating mini-concerts reporting the time. The chimes ring clear and pure, resonating a pleasurable audible grammar communicating temporal context.
Beyond the appreciated consistency offered by Patek Philippe‘s strikework, the isolating chambers separating hour, quarter and minute notes streamlines distinction through acoustic hierarchy. The très petite spaces demand extreme precision fitting the micro-gongs beside arrayed cams and levers.
But such mellifluous mechanical miniaturization bears significant sweat equity. Earning its "grand complications" designation doesn‘t come easy.
The Grueling Genesis of Grand Complications
Developing grande complication timepieces like the Grandmaster Chime requires infinite patience and academic rigor. Math, physics and engineering converge as technical blueprints transform into sculptures symbolizing human triumph over physics through ingenuity. Grand complications fuse conceptual audacity with manual finesse over fragile forces.
The level of multi-disciplinary mastery concentrates substantial brain trust under each unique roof. For Patek Philippe‘s Grandmaster Chime collection, conception began in the early 2000s, taking over 10 years and demanding expertise across multiple domains:
Conception: Rigorously planned architecture
Design: Creative flourishes within constraints
Simulation: Virtual modeling predicts successes/failings
Prototyping: Trial and error uncovering the best executions
Decoration: Artisanal hand-finishing
Assembly: Strategic piece-by-piece construction
Testing: Ensuring flawless functionality
Adjustment: Fine-tuning and optimizations
Such crossing of artistry and engineering explains the tremendous sweat equity placed into grand complications like the Grandmaster Chime.
Forward-thinking technical conception was only the beginning; equal amounts of traditional handiwork breathe soul into the micromachines. Each Grandmaster Chime requires nearly 1000 hours just for assembly and fine finishing. Under high magnification, chamfers crisply trim edges across steel components. Geneva waves flow like metallic zen gardens across the main plate. Gold chatons studded with diamonds catch light elegantly at the fulcrum points of spinning tourbillions.
No computer or automated process can replicate such virtuosic delicacy. Only after years portraying their creative vision through surgical hands-on precision could Patek Philippe encase the first Grandmaster Chime.
But even after a decade developing the Grandmaster Chime, Patek Philippe still sought to transcend watchmaking limits once more. The 2019 Only Watch Charity auction offered the perfect venue to showcase their stainless steel magnum opus.
Only Watch 2019: Patek Philippe Smashes Records
Biennially, the Only Watch auction pools prized offerings from over 50 luxury watchmakers to support Duchenne muscular dystrophy research. But 2019‘s event would make history, thanks to the Grandmaster Chime flexing its "stainless steel" uniqueness.
Earlier Grandmaster Chime editions appeared instead cast in precious platinum and rose gold. So why stainless steel? As mentioned earlier, Patek deliberately juxtaposed opposing textures: industrial steel contrasting the lavish mechanical beauty hand-finished with golden accents. By re-contextualizing such complex craft in modest materials, they created an avant-garde martyr to horological excess.
Thus, the Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300 not only owned technical distinctions as the first Grand Complication cased in steel–it also owned stylistic significance as an ironic celebration of delicate complexity honoring the resilience shown by Duchenne research and sufferers alike.
Come November 9, as the Grandmaster Chime stepped under the paddle, a fierce bidding war kicked off in the Palexpo auction room. The price shot up exponentially from the original 5 million Swiss franc estimate to an unheard of 31 million francs (~$31.1 million). This rocketed past all previous Patek Philippe auction records, shattering the decade long second-place record once held by the Henry Graves Supercomplication sold for ~$24 million.
In the context of all watches sold at auction, the Grandmaster Chime‘s $31.1 million shooting past the $17.75 million Rolex "Bao Dai" sold in 2017 easily crowns the Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A-010 the officially most expensive watch ever.
In one historic gesture, the legendary Grandmaster Chime simultaneously demonstrated the pinnacle of mechanical watchmaking while elevating Patek Philippe auction records into the financial stratosphere–for now.
Given the Stern family‘s relentless quest to continually refine the transcendent beauty capturing time‘s eternal poetry, I ponder if we‘ll ever see another watch steal the Grandmaster Chime‘s recently earned crown as the most expensive watch in existence. One thing remains certain however–Patek Philippe connoisseurs sure witnessed something special on November 9, 2019.
I‘m fortunate to have shared my insights and observations as witness to the historic sale of the Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300 at Only Watch 2019. Let me know your thoughts! Do you think the $31 million price was justified? Will another watch steal its #1 record?
Either way, I appreciate you walking this journey back through watch auction history with me. Looking forward to our next rendezvous!
