Patek Philippe Grand Complications Alarm Travel Time 5520P-001

Calatrava 5226G – time and date
Since 1934, Patek Philippe has been using the Clous de Paris or stud pattern on the bezel of its Calatrava models. The pattern became iconic with the success of the Calatrava ref. in 1985. 3919 (33.5mm, manual movement 215 PS), helping Patek Philippe recover from the quartz crisis. Since then, this nail has been available in the Calatrava product portfolio. The latest addition to the "banker's watch" style (a nickname in reference to the 3919) is a novelty reference for 2021. The 6119 has a slightly larger diameter of 39 mm and has a Calibre 30‑255 PS inside. Just like before, the tiny pyramid appears in an endless circle around the bezel.

The new Calatrava 5226G is instantly a Calatrava, but it's not. It's as refined as the rest of the family, but while the rest is pure and elegant, it exudes enormous coolness. There is no single characteristic of this X-Factor, but a mixture of attributes (very balanced with the DNA of the series) that defines its personality.

Let's start with the studded Paris motif, this time on a three-row 40mm white gold case strap. What's more, it's faithful to its predecessors, which operate in an unbroken loop. The lugs are actually attached to the case back, allowing a small gap between the case and the lugs so the stud pattern can continue behind the lugs. The impact is even greater as the pattern is surrounded by polished and sloping surfaces, such as the lugs and slightly chamfered wider bezel.

The dial is the second notable phenomenon. Patek Philippe says the textured charcoal grey and black gradient finish was inspired by the grip of vintage cameras. Grey has a warm tone that complements gold Arabic numerals and beige luminous coating. The gradient rough surface ends with a black flat ring, where the beige minute track sits. The date window repeats the same black-beige combination.

The hands stand out from the circle of the Dauphin and the hand of Spades Calatrava. To perfectly match the sportier case and dial, the watchmakers have added syringe-style hour and minute hands, made from 18k gold with the same beige luminous coating. The seconds hand is beige lacquered.

The automatic 4Hz calibre 26‑330 SC, 27mm wide and 3.3mm high, works inside an 8.53mm thick case. The exquisite movement can be seen through the sapphire caseback.

I love the unity of these design components combined with the simple time and date functionality, which makes for a very slim shape. From Patek Philippe's great and even better novelties, ref. Even after many trial runs, the 5226G is still my favorite.

Calatrava 5326G – Almanac and Travel Times
The eldest brother is 5326G, which has the function of annual calendar and travel time. Due to the added complexity, the Calibre 31‑260 PS QA LU FUS 24H is larger than its predecessor (33 mm in diameter, 5.6 mm in height), resulting in a slightly larger case: 41 mm in diameter and 11.07 mm in height. This means wider case sides and five rounds of guilloché de Paris. Again, they run behind the lugs, with only the crown and four recessed date corrector pushers breaking its flow. The four buttons are: month corrector at 2 o'clock, date at 4 o'clock, moon phase at 8 o'clock and day of the week at 10 o'clock. The crown has three positions: you wind it by default; pull it once to set the local time in one-hour increments; pull it all the way out to set the time to go home.

The face has the same textured charcoal grey black gradient with more holes and indications. Day and month at 12 o'clock. The date is at 6 o'clock, just like the moon phase and small seconds. The home time hour hand is hollowed out and has the same barrel design. In order to maintain its spirit but balance the increased number of indications, the designers decided to simplify the minute numbers and opt for a railway track minute scale.

The Calibre 31‑260 PS QA LU FUS 24H automatic movement consists of 409 parts, including an off-centre platinum mini-rotor and a beautiful bridge, all of which can be observed on the caseback. When fully wound, the mainspring can store energy for 38-48 hours.

5205R – Annual Calendar
Dark green is the color of many new Patek Philippe products this year. Combining this with the rose gold case gives the ref a whole new look. The 5205 was introduced in 2010. The color is actually a green-black gradient that gets darker around the rim. The beautiful rose gold shade stands out from this dark background. A subdial at 6 o'clock shows the moon phase and hours on a 24-hour scale. ref's iconic annual calendar window. 5205 received great attention. The lugs are hollowed out, the shape of which continues in the case as a hollowed-out negative.

Patek Philippe's widely used automatic Calibre 324 S QA LU 24H beats internally at 4 Hz.