Patek Philippe Ladies Calatrava

The 'Holy Trinity' of watch brands: Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, and Vacheron Constantin. Perhaps the most celebrated of the three, Patek Philippe has an unrivaled reputation for crafting some of the most complicated — and some of the simplest, yet most beautiful — timekeepers the market has seen. Sports watches came later to Patek, as pressure from the new 'luxury sports watch' category introduced in the early 1970s forced the storied brand to evolve — but historically, classically-styled dress pieces is where the maison cut its teeth. This particular timepiece, a Reference 1289, is a ladies' version of the famed Calatrava dress watch. Measuring 21mm in yellow gold, it boasts a smooth bezel, a signed winding crown, a smooth bezel, long lugs, and a simple silvered dial with an outer applied minute track, applied 'wedge' indices, and a matching yellow gold 'pencil' handset.  Powered by the Patek Philippe 8"'85 hand-wound movement, it comes paired to a matching yellow gold mesh-style bracelet with a gold folding clasp. Dating to the circa 1950s and oozing class, it's an ideal wrist companion for someone longing for a bit of midcentury elegance.