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On August 25, the Phillips auction house, in association with Bacs & Russo, announced the upcoming sale of one of the most legendary and significant wristwatches ever made. It is a stainless steel Patek Philippe Ref. 1518, introduced in 1941, which was the world’s first wristwatch to combine a perpetual calendar with a chronograph, a true technological breakthrough for its time.
According to what is known, of the roughly 281 examples produced in total, the overwhelming majority were crafted in 18K yellow gold, with a handful in rose gold – these already highly coveted by collectors. Even rarer, and of the utmost collectable value, are the mere four known examples in steel. One of them is the watch in question, which last appeared at auction during Phillips’ Geneva Watch Auction: FOUR in November 2016. At that time, it sold for CHF 11,002,000, a record-breaking sum that crowned it as the most expensive wristwatch ever sold at auction. It was also the very first to cross the eight-figure threshold in a sale price. To this day, it remains the most valuable vintage Patek Philippe ever to change hands at auction. The watch will return to the rostrum in Geneva this November, with an estimated sale price between CHF 8,000,000 and 16,000,000.
According to Aurel Bacs, Senior Consultant at Phillips: “Just four stainless-steel Patek Philippe reference 1518s are publicly known today. Each one is extraordinary. This is the one that captured the world’s attention in 2016. It redefined the market and ushered in a new era in watch collecting. For seasoned collectors and newcomers alike, its return to auction marks a moment of rare opportunity – making it the perfect watch to headline our 10th anniversary auction in Geneva this November.”
Aurel Bacs is one of the most prominent figures in the watch world, largely thanks to the record-breaking results he has achieved with Phillips. The sale of that steel Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 in 2016 cemented its status as one of the most desirable watches in existence and paved the way for historically significant auction results that followed. Who could forget the $17.8 million reached by Paul Newman’s personal Rolex Daytona Ref. 6239 in 2017, also through Phillips?
The Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 occupies a unique place in the history of watchmaking. It was unveiled in the midst of World War II, marking the very first time a perpetual calendar was combined with a chronograph in a wristwatch, marrying technical innovation with elegance on the wrist. In particular, the steel versions of the Ref. 1518 are described as “unicorns” by the community of connoisseurs. Much like those mythical creatures, they are so rare that only a handful of collectors will ever see one in person. Moreover, this particular watch may well be the most famous of them all, not only because of its excellent condition but also because, through its sale, the Ref. 1518 ceased to be a well-kept secret among aficionados and instead became a global collecting phenomenon.
“Collectors understand that this isn’t just a watch. It’s a benchmark. A collector’s item that transcends its category and belongs in the same conversation as a Ferrari 250 GTO or a Rothko.” This is how Alexandre Ghotbi, Deputy Chairman, Phillips, and Head of Watches, Europe & Middle East, describes the significance of this timepiece.
The Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 is offered in outstanding condition, in line with the highest standards of preservation. It features a 35 mm steel case crafted by Georges Croisier, as well as a well-preserved dial by Stern Frères. It bears case number 508’473 and movement number 863’193. Beneath the case number appears the digit “1,” indicating that this was the very first steel 1518 ever produced.
According to the archives of Patek Philippe, its production ended in 1943, two years after the introduction of the first 1518s. It was sold to the dealer Joseph Lang in Budapest on February 22, 1944. And now, more than 80 years after its birth in the workshops of Patek Philippe, it is once again offered for sale, on November 8-9, 2025, in Geneva, at Phillips’ grand Decade One (2015–2025) anniversary auction.
