Sounding the Alarm: The Chiming Watches of the Patek Philippe Calatrava

When people ask me what my Patek Philippe choice would be if I could have any I wanted, my answer seems to surprise most. It does not, however, surprise anyone who has been a serious and long-term enthusiast, follower, or collector. My answer is: one of their wonderful chiming watches.

Patek Philippe chiming watches have always been high on the list of ultimates for many, if not most, serious collectors, and even then, they are very scarce. The minute repeaters of Patek Philippe have always been tested by hand and ear personally before they leave the premises by Thierry Stern or, previously, the late Philippe Stern. There’s always been something special about them.

There were two new references from Patek Philippe that were released this year at Watches and Wonders that didn’t get attention the way others did. And yet they are very key pieces for several reasons. They are the 5322G chiming alarms, either as a 5322G-001 with a gradient blue face or a 5322G-010 with a gradient green face. Both of these are in white gold 41-millimeter Calatrava cases with the hobnail texture along the sides of the case band.

The dials alone deserve discussion. They are quite striking in person, with changing light shifting the look from matte to glossy and the gradient along the edges adding interest and depth. The dial-making process itself is quite involved and time-consuming, with each one taking from four to six months and approximately 60 different operations.

This is a grand complication watch. It is technically extremely strong, and yet it doesn’t come off like that visually. With the colors and the precise execution of the indices, it is clearly a more modern take on the relatively classic look of complicated watches and the Calatravas. Many people won’t even recognize it as being as special as it is.

There’s a subdial at 6 o’clock that acts as a date indicator. There are also two apertures at the upper part of the watch that you might think at first would be date or month indications, but what they show is the alarm time in a digital expression, settable in 15-minute increments. Above and below that digital display are two apertures that show whether the time indicated for the alarm is set for day or night and whether the alarm is on or off, which is activated by the pusher at around 2 o’clock.

The digital alarm time is set using the first pull of the crown, while time-telling with the hour, minute, and seconds hands is set by the second pull of the crown. When the crown is in the fully closed position, you wind the time-telling mechanism in one direction (counterclockwise) and the alarm in the other direction (clockwise).

Now let’s get to the alarm. Most think of alarm watches as buzzing, but that would just not do for Patek Philippe. This is a chiming watch. And it hits the gongs for a sound that is more like the minute repeaters than it is a vintage alarm watch or clock. It is tuned to produce a set number of strikes per second, 2.5 per second for a total of around 90. This consistency needed its own mechanism, an inertial governor, just to regulate it. The alarm system alone has been granted four patents. If you flip the watch over, through the sapphire crystal caseback you will see the hammer as it strikes the gong. That movement is the AL 30-660SC, self-winding and with a power reserve between 42 and 52 hours.

As we said, this is a bit of a more modern take on what would normally be a very classic or classical timepiece. That is reflected in the colors of the dial, and it is also reflected in how they chose to make the straps, which are a composite material with a fabric pattern that matches the color of the dial. This is a watch that may see much more use than traditional grand complications, which brings us to another interesting thing about this watch. It is the only Patek Philippe chiming watch in the current collection that is water-resistant, up to 30 meters, though more for protection from rain and splashes than any serious water immersion.

These two new members of the stalwart Calatrava family, with their colorful look and their grand complication, haven’t really drawn attention from the mainstream or even lower- or mid-level discussions. For true enthusiasts and collectors, though, they are considered surprisingly enticing pieces that deserve a place on the wrist for their fine watchmaking journey.

This article originally appeared in Robb Report Philippines’ Watches and Jewelry Issue.