1 / 1214 Nov 2026
61 / Patek Philippe
839J, A Unique, Minute-Repeater, Perpetual Calendar, Large and Heavy Pocket Watch, Yellow Gold (18-Carat)
Estimate: $100,000 – 180,000
- Brand
- Patek Philippe, Geneva
- Model
- ‘Double Complication’
- Year
- circa 1874
- Reference
- 839J
- Movement
- No. 47 634 (1874)
- Calibre
- 19’’’ RM QP, manual-winding, probably 23 jewels
- Case
- No. 312 006 (by Antoine Gerlach, Geneva)
- Material/s
- yellow gold (18-carat)
- Dimensions
- Ø 53.8 mm
- Thickness
- 16.9 mm
- Weight
- 172.3 gr. (approx.)
- Signature
- dial, case and movement
- Accessories
- Extract from the Archives
- •
- Minute-repeater by two hammers on two steel gongs (rings on demand, ‘repeating at will’, hours, quarters and minutes elapsed; activated by the slide at 5:30)
- •
- Perpetual calendar
- •
- Date of the month (subsidiary dial at 6 o’clock)
- •
- Day of the week (subsidiary dial at 9 o’clock; indications given in French)
- •
- Month of the year (subsidiary dial at 3 o’clock; indications given in French)
- •
- Age and phases of the moon (subsidiary dial, graduated from 0 to 29 ½, and aperture at 12 o’clock)
About this watch & "Peter Knoll" This watch is one of the rarest pocket watches with six horological complications made by Patek Philippe. It is the only Ref. 839 known to have been produced by the Genevan manufacture, and probably the only one ever built. The movement was originally manufactured in 1874 and sold in a gold case on July 19, 1875. In 1962, Patek Philippe re-cased the movement for one of its highly esteemed customers in a new case with modern lines especially designed for this watch. This case is very similar in spirit to the brand-new self-winding wristwatch with perpetual calendar, the famous Ref. 3448. At the time, these cases with their clean lines and facets seduced lovers of fine horology. Like Ref. 3448, the case of this Ref. 839 was made in the workshops of Antoine Gerlach in Geneva (master hallmark number 4; this number inside the Key of Geneva). Today, collectors of wristwatches and collectors of pocket watches can only admire this magnificent timepiece. Another interesting feature of this watch is the wavy lines on the external minute track. In our opinion, these uneven lines are not intentional, but rather due to the expansion and contraction of the paint used to make the dial. –– We have been informed by several individuals that this pocket watch may have been acquired by Peter Knoll in 1962. No documentation currently known to us, however, confirms this information or establishes the precise circumstances under which the watch may have entered his possession. Such a possibility nevertheless remains plausible. Peter Knoll (1943–2018), son of Hans Knoll, founder of the celebrated American modern furniture company Knoll Associates, was approximately nineteen years old at the time and was living in Switzerland, where he attended the International School of Geneva. Although he had not yet established a professional career or reputation of his own, he came from a particularly affluent family and could therefore conceivably have had the means to acquire a watch of this importance. Peter Knoll later became an avid watch collector, with a particular interest in Patek Philippe. It is therefore also possible that the tradition associating this watch with his name is correct, but that the date of its acquisition has been inaccurately transmitted. If he did not acquire the watch in 1962, it may have entered his collection at a later date. In the absence of documentary evidence establishing its provenance with certainty, however, these possibilities must remain hypotheses. –– What is a perpetual calendar? A perpetual calendar is a horological calendar mechanism which, unlike a simple calendar, automatically adjusts the date of the month by taking into account the varying lengths of each month (30 or 31), as well as autocorrecting 29 February in leap years. Since the 18th century, watchmakers and scientists have succeeded in creating clocks and watches that can give these indications mechanically. As early as 1924, Audemars Piguet was the first manufacturer to produce wristwatches with a perpetual calendar and moon phases. In 1925, Patek Philippe modified a ladies’ perpetual calendar pendant-watch of its own invention to produce the first instantaneous changing perpetual calendar wristwatch with leap year indication. From the early 1940s onwards, Patek Philippe began manufacturing in series wristwatches with perpetual calendars, initially, around ten pieces were produced each year (Ref. 1526 and Ref. 1518, the latter with chronograph). In 1962, Patek Philippe created the first wristwatch with a self-winding perpetual calendar to be produced in series in the history of horology (Cal 27-460 Q, Ref. 3448). Patek Philippe was in fact the only manufacturer to produce perpetual calendars for decades, even during the quartz crisis of the 1970s. It was not until the 1980s and 1990s that its competitors followed suit. These facts and these watches only add to the reputation of the company – the best watch manufacturer in the world – and have delighted collectors for over forty years. ––
Biography
Patek Philippe, Master of all Horological Complication Patek Philippe is a prestigious Swiss watch manufacturer, renowned for its luxury watches and exceptional craftsmanship. Founded in 1839 in Geneva by Antoine Norbert de Patek (1812-1877) and François Czapek (1811-after 1869), the company quickly established its reputation as a manufacturer of superior watches. In 1844, following the National Exhibition of French Industrial Products in Paris, Antoine Norbert de Patek met Jean-Adrien Philippe (1814-1894), a young French watchmaker. In 1845, after Czapek’s departure, the two men concluded a commercial agreement and introduced numerous innovations in the field of watchmaking, notably a keyless-winding and time-setting system for which Philippe received a Bronze medal. In 1851, the company was renamed “Patek, Philippe & Cie – Fabricants à Genève”, and over the decades became synonymous with exclusivity, precision and technical perfection as evidenced by the wristwatch made for the countess Hungarian Koscowicz (1868), patents for a precision regulator (1881), a perpetual calendar mechanism (1889), a double chronograph (1902) and all the brand’s creations, whether pocket watches or watches. bracelets with horological complications. From the early 1900s until 1927, Patek Philippe introduced a unique business model. The house’s main distributor based in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, “Gondolo & Labouriau” sold more than a third of the production at the time thanks to a cleverly orchestrated sales system. These timepieces, known as “Chronometro Gondolo”, are collector’s items famous both for their very high technical quality and for their unique history. The watches were sold at the time, exclusively to members of a very select clubs called the “Gondolo Gang” which have 180 members. Being part of these collector’s clubs was, at the beginning of the 20th century, a distinctive sign of success in Brazilian society. According to an ingenious raffle system, each member of the club agrees to buy a watch for the amount of 790 Swiss francs divided into 79 weekly instalments of 10 francs. During these 79 weeks of repayment, a weekly draw is organized where the winner is released from the balance of his debt. The first winner pays 10 francs for their watch, the second 20 francs, etc. The earlier you buy your watch, the cheaper it costs, provided you win this lottery. Echoing this episode in its history, the “Gondolo” collection was reinterpreted in 1993 with shaped watches. In 1932, Patek Philippe became a family business when the Stern family, already involved in the production of dials for the brand, bought the company. It is also the year of the launch of a model that will become the brand’s flagship collection: the “Calatrava”. Even today, it contributes to the success and reputation of the company. Among the emblematic models of Patek Philippe, we can also mention the “Ellipse” (1968) with its elliptical-shaped case, at the crossroads of the circle and the rectangle which is inspired by the “golden ratio”; the “Nautilus” (1976), a sporty and luxurious watch whose case is inspired by a porthole; or watches for women, such as the “Twenty-4” collection (1999), which combines feminine elegance with horological precision. Since its creation, the brand has been driven by a spirit of innovation. In 1989, Patek Philippe released a very complex model to celebrate its 150th anniversary. Named “Calibre 89”, the watch is equipped with 33 horological complications and its calibre is made up of 1 728 parts. Eleven years later, in order to celebrate the second millennium, the brand released the “Star Calibre 2000” model, a double-sided pocket watch with 21 horological complications. Finally, the year 2002 saw the launch of the “Sky Moon Tourbillon” model, the most complicated double-sided wristwatch ever produced by the house. Benchmark precision instruments, Patek Philippe watches are also recognized by collectors for being objects of art whose beauty reflects perfection. For many years, Patek Philippe has strived to preserve all the high craftsmanship professions linked for more than four centuries to the decoration of timepieces. This is how exceptional contemporary creations come into being – pocket watches, wristwatches, or clocks –, most often unique pieces, which highlight all these skills that are threatened with disappearance. This transmission value is essential for the brand. Patek Philippe can be proud of having filed more than 70 patents since its creation, notably for a Gyromax balance-wheel (1949), mechanical watches with time zones (1959), a mechanical movement with peripheral rotor (1964), an indicator mechanism of the date of Easter (1985), an annual calendar (1996) or even an astronomical representation mechanism (2000). These technical innovations have largely contributed to advancing the horological industry while contributing to the brand’s reputation for excellence. Today, Patek Philippe is a watch brand that continues to produce superior quality watches that are admired by watch enthusiasts around the world. -- Key Dates • 1839: foundation of “Patek, Czapek & Cie2 by Antoine Norbert de Patek and François Czapek in Geneva. • 1845: following the departure of Czapek, the company becomes “Patek & Cie”. Arrival of Jean-Adrien Philippe, a young French watchmaker who invented a keyless-winding and time-setting mechanism. • 1851: the company is now called “Patek, Philippe & Cie”. The house presented its products at the Universal Exhibition in London, the first event of its kind. • 1868: manufacture of the first wristwatch for the Hungarian Countess Koscowicz. • 1901: the company becomes a public limited company. • 1932: acquisition of a majority of shares by the Stern family, one of the manufacturers of dials for the brand. Launch of the reference 96 which will later be called “Calatrava”. • 1949: patent for the “Gyromax” balance-wheel. • 1953: launch of the self-winding “Calibre 12-600 AT”. • 1968: launch of the first “Golden Ellipse” model, the Ref. 3548. • 1976: launch of the first “Nautilus” sports watch, the Ref. 3700/1 in stainless steel. • 1989: 150th anniversary of the manufacture. Launch of various commemorative watches and the “Calibre 89”, at the time the most complicated watch ever made, with 33 horological complications. • 1996: establishment of the new factory in Plan-les-Ouates, near Geneva. • 2001: inauguration of the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva, exhibiting a remarkable collection of antique watches, horological art and enamel (1500-1850), and Patek Philippe watches. • 2019: 180th anniversary of the manufacture. -- Iconic models and current collections • “Calatrava”: this collection is emblematic of the manufacture. These watches are distinguished by their clean and classic design, with a round case and a minimalist dial. The “Calatrava” embodies timeless elegance and represents the brand’s traditional watchmaking know-how. • “Nautilus”: this model is one of the most emblematic models of the manufacture. Designed by Gérald Genta, it is high-end sports watch recognizable by its octagonal case and its integrated bracelet. It offers a perfect balance between sportiness and elegance. • “Aquanaut”: this collection is another line of sports watches from Patek Philippe. These watches are characterized by its octagonal case and rubber strap. It offers a contemporary aesthetic and high resistance to hydrostatic pressure. • “Twenty-4”: this collection is specially designed for women. These watches combine classic elegance with contemporary style. Initially equipped with a rectangular-shaped case and offering a selection of models with diamonds and steel or gold bracelets, they are now round in shape.