Patek Philippe World Time

n the 1950s, the advent (and immediacy) of jet travel — and the frequency at which transatlantic and transcontinental flights occurred — made it necessary for travelers to have a wristwatch that could display two time zones at once. The Patek Philippe World Timer was born, though only remained in the catalog for a short time. It wasn't until 2010 when Patek revived the name with a new Reference, the 5110, which was undoubtedly a hit and has existed in Patek's offerings since — in various References. This piece, a Reference 5230G, is one of the latest in the line. Rendered here in 18k white gold, it features a 38.5mm case with a sapphire crystal, a signed crown, a smooth polished bezel, and a textured grey dial with rotating world city and 24hr disks — operated by the square pusher at 10:00, a matching, stylized 'world-time' handset. This piece comes fitted to a signed black alligator leather strap and is powered by Patek Philippe's automatic winding Calibre 240 HU movement with a micro-rotor, thankfully visible via a sapphire exhibition caseback. There’s a traveler’s watch, and then there’s a traveler’s watch — this is the latter.