Patek Philippe. A Fine and Early Gilt Brass Desk Clock

An autonomous quartz clock completed by Patek Philippe in 1956, measuring over four feet high and two feet wide, was considered one of the decade’s monumental achievements in the electronic timekeeping. By the 1960s, miniaturization became the new ‘space race’ of the horological world. In the early 1960s, the Chonotome, Ref. 1000E, was the next groundbreaking release in the development of miniaturized electronic clocks. In 1964, the Chronotome retailed for $1,350 and was considered the most cutting edge timekeeping technology available.

The first Patek Philippe Chronotome prototype that left the factory was a special three timezone clock made for President John F. Kennedy in 1963. The special clock was made by Patek to accurately and simultaneously present the time in Moscow, Washington, and Berlin.

The presently offered clock is believed to be part of this first series of Patek Philippe prototype clocks from the early 1960s. It features an early movement number for this series (734) and a special location plaque of HELVETIA representing the time of Switzerland. As with many early electronic clocks, not all movement numbers were accounted for internally with Patek Philippe and consequently no Patek Philippe archive can be issued.