Swiss 18K gold doctor’s chronograph pocket watch Circa 1905

Gold open faced lever chronograph
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An extremely rare and elegant Swiss 18 carat gold open faced keyless pocket watch with chronograph and pulsometer scale made by Patek Philippe in Geneva, circa 1905. Bridge movement with a lever escapement and gold screw compensation balance. Two tone silver sector dial, an inner chapter ring with baton hour markers, and Arabic 9 and 3, an outer minute and fifth of a second track with five minute numerals, an outermost pulsometer scale graduated to 30 pulsations, subsidiary seconds at 6 o’clock, a 30 minute counter at 12, a central chronograph hand and blued leaf hands. A polished case.
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Diameter: 50 mm
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Weight: 102 g
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Signed: Patek Philippe & Cie Genève – Walser Wald
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This unusual single button chronograph impresses with its elegant beauty and the rare pulsometer scale on the extremely fine designed sector dial of two tone silver. It was probably modernized in the 1940s by the renowned Patek Philippe commission agent, Walser Wald in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The exquisite movement from 1905 was provided with a then contemporary dial and the case was also adapted to the taste of the time.
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A chronograph watch with a pulsations scale on the dial is called a ‘doctor’s watch’. It helps doctors cut down on the time necessary to gauge a person’s pulse and, more importantly, reduce errors. The doctor would simply start the chronograph, count 30 heartbeats and then stop the chronograph to see the patient’s pulse per minute on the red scale without further calculations.