Patek Philippe · Automatic

240

Patek's ultra-thin automatic, introduced in 1977 as a mechanical answer to quartz on the one ground quartz had won: thinness. A 22K gold micro-rotor recessed into the mainplate rather than sitting above it holds the movement to 2.53 mm across a 27.5 mm diameter. The 3 Hz balance is deliberate — a slower beat draws roughly a fifth less energy than 4 Hz, which is how a rotor that small still keeps the mainspring wound. It runs a Gyromax balance, and underpins the thinner Calatrava, Nautilus and Aquanaut references.