Phillips in Association with Bacs and Russo presents – for the second time – the Patek Philippe Steel 1518 for their Decade One (2015-2025) auction to be held during 8 – 9 November 2025 in Geneva. Phillips first auctioned this very same Steel 1518 in 2016 at their Geneva Watch Auction: FOUR – where it broke the record for the most expensive wristwatch ever sold at auction at the time, and the first to break the eight-figure mark at CHF 11,002,000.
Image: It features a 35 mm stainless steel case made by Georges Croisier – a renowned casemaker at the time. 35 mm is a perfect case size, and many watch brands are returning to smaller case sizes today. Notice how the hour, minute, and chronograph seconds hand curve near their tips – a lovely detail.
Introduced in 1941, Patek Philippe’s 1518 was the first wristwatch that incorporated a perpetual calendar with a chronograph – a significant technical achievement at the time. 281 pieces are estimated to have been made – mostly in 18K yellow gold. Only 4 are known to have been made in stainless steel.
Image: The “1” stamped below the case number “508.473” denotes that this was the first steel 1518 to be made. Notice the beautiful movement finishing. Movement number is “863.193”. It is a manually wound 13 lignes (approximately 29 mm diameter) movement that drives the hours, minutes, small seconds, perpetual calendar, moon phase display, and chronograph functions. I think the tiny symbol on the bridge on the far left of the movement is the Poinçon de Genève or Geneva Seal.
“Just four stainless-steel Patek Philippe reference 1518s are publicly known today. Each one is extraordinary. This is the one that captured the world’s attention in 2016. It redefined the market and ushered in a new era in watch collecting. For seasoned collectors and newcomers alike, its return to auction marks a moment of rare opportunity – making it the perfect watch to headline our 10th anniversary auction in Geneva this November.” – Aurel Bacs, Senior Consultant, Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo.
Image: The dial was crafted by Stern Frères – and beautifully preserved for this 82-year-old watch.
The Steel 1518 presented by Phillips was made in 1943, two years after the reference was introduced. This was confirmed by its Extract from the Archives from Patek Phillipe. Its first customer was Joseph Lang, a Budapest based retailer – with 22 February 1944 as the date of sale. For the Decade One (2015-2025) auction, it carries an estimate of CHF 8,000,000 – 16,000,000.
“Collectors understand that this isn’t just a watch. It’s a benchmark. A collector’s item that transcends its category and belongs in the same conversation as a Ferrari 250 GTO or a Rothko.” – Alexandre Ghotbi, Deputy Chairman, Phillips, and Head of Watches, Europe & Middle East.
Our Thoughts
Image: The Patek Philippe Steel 1518 is among “the unicorns of the collecting world: watches so elusive that most collectors will never encounter one in person.” Beautiful dial details and perfect placement of the Arabic numerals, apertures, subdials, scales, and other details.
It’s always exciting when a watch as elusive as the Patek Philippe Steel 1518 appears at auction. And more so to be able to watch the auction – either live or online. While watches like this change ownership among a handful of elite collectors over time – I believe their ability to break records transcends watch collecting and the industry.
Whether one is a first-time collector or an experienced collector – knowing that a watch has broken auction records might provide the right amount of impetus for them to begin or continue collecting (even if the watches they are buying has little to no resale), and hence good for the industry. The Steel 1518’s 2016 auction record along with others such as Paul Newman’s “Paul Newman” Rolex Daytona Ref. 6239 – which sold for CHF 17,709,894 at the Phillips New York auction in 2017 – have helped transform watches into an asset class. It got a lot of people not interested in watches to begin talking about watches.
We wish the team at Phillips in Association with Bacs and Russo all the best and hope that the Steel 1518 breaks its 2016 auction record and once again sets a new world record for a wristwatch at auction.
Phillips is not a stranger to historic and important timepieces. Earlier this year they presented the F.P. Journe X THA for Breguet – Pendule Sympathique N°1 which sold for CHF 5,505,000 at the Geneva Watch Auction: XXI held during 10 – 11 May 2025. In the same auction they sold watches in support of the Philippe & Elisabeth Dufour Fondation – such as the ArtyA Genève Curvy Purity Tourbillon Ruby.
Please contact Phillips for more information.
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