There are grails, and there are grails. The reference 2499 from Patek Philippe, part of the incredible lineage of perpetual calendar chronographs (explained by us in detail here) is, well, kinda the end game. It's larger than the early 1518 and later 3970, and more classically designed than the 5970, and above all else, it's still vintage, with a production that began in the 1950s cheap rolex replica. Today, we caught wind of a 2499 for sale, but it's a special one. Not only is it in mint condition, but it also happens to be one of only a very few examples from the second series made in rose gold. You likely don't know what that means, but to us, we think it might just be the most expensive wristwatch ever listed for sale by a dealer on the Internet.
A rose-gold 2499 is unbelievably rare. Some say there are less than 10 known examples, with most falling into the second series (denoted by a tachymetre on the dial, dauphine hands, and pump pushers). We happen to know that LVMH head Mr. Jean-Claude Biver owns one because he showed it to us here. A rose second series 2499 isn't something you go out and buy, it's something you have to hunt for, and in some cases, it will take you years to find one.
And that is what makes this watch so special. Not only is this second series 2499 here and available, it is in superb condition, with incredible definition in the stepped lugs and hallmarks. The dial is perfect faded and completely unrestored in any way.
So it's a second series, rose-gold Patek 2499, but what does that actually mean and why did I choose to write about it today? Well, Pateks come up for sale all the time. But seldom do really great ones get shown, and even less frequently are they great vintage Pateks. From there, the 2499 second series is rare in itself. When you add the fact it is rose and not yellow gold, you have something just shy of unique. Like I mentioned, there are less than 10 of these in the world, and the odds of them ever changing hands are slim. So, the reason I am writing this article is because when a watch like this is sold, it is done either on the cover of a Christie's catalog or between private friends in a salon in downtown Geneva ?not here, on the Internet. And that is what we have here. This rose-gold 2499 is listed for sale from Miami dealer Matthew Bain. You can see the listing right here.
The price on something like this? The ask is $3,200,000. Yes. This is a $3.2 million watch listed for sale, on the Internet. To us, it's a great thing. So many of the greatest replica watches in the world are never seen by the watch-loving community because dealers buy with clients in mind and they're never shown publicly. The fact that Matthew Bain has purchased this incredible watch and listed it proudly on his website is a nice way of giving back, just a little bit, to the people that keep this industry afloat ?all us watch lovers. Certainly, few of us out here can afford a watch like this, but my guess is more than a few of us appreciate the fact that we can at least look at this grail amongst grails.
You can see the ONLINE LISTING of this 1950s Patek Philippe 2499 Second Series in Rose Gold ?for sale at $3.2M ?right here. How great is that?
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