Swiss pink gold World Time open faced lever dress watch Circa 1964

Gold keyless lever World Time Watch by Patek Philippe
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A fine and rare Swiss 18 carat pink gold keyless open faced lever World Time dress watch, circa 1964. This watch features a rhodium plated movement with Geneva striping decoration, 18 jewels, straight line lever escapement, cut bimetallic compensation balance adjusted to heat, cold, isochronism, and five positions, and a blued steel Breguet balance spring with swanneck micrometre regulator. The silvered dial has applied gold hour indexes, applied Roman quarter hour numerals, outer Arabic dark and light revolving chapter ring for the day and night hours, and the world time chapter ring. The watch bears the name of 41 locations around the world and revolves with the bezel according to the Louis Cottier World Time patent. It also has gold halberd and dauphine hands.
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The watch has a solid pink gold case, polished with a brushed back and a milled revolving bezel. The dial, case, and movement are all signed. Additionally, it comes with a Patek Philippe Extract from the Archives confirming the production of the watch in 1964 and its subsequent sale on 27th May 1966.
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Diameter: 44 mm
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Signed: Patek Philippe Genève
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The movement is in good working condition. The dial has minor spots visible only under a strong loupe. The index markers show signs of discolouration, particularly at 12 and 3 o’clock. The 24-hour marker is nicely raised with hard enamel, exhibiting only slight spotting. The outer city ring is also raised in hard enamel and remains in its original condition, with only minor signs of ageing in some areas. The case is very crisp and original, with slight tarnishing along the edges. The case back shows surface wear that is consistent with the watch’s age, with minor signs of opening. The case has undergone light polishing.
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This example was produced in the early 1940s in a very limited quantity of fewer than 100 pieces and was discontinued in the early 1960s. The model was also available in yellow gold with various layouts and dial colours. To meet the rigorous standards of the world time mechanism, Cottier personally oversaw the finishing of each reference 605 during that period. As the world time complication is among the most sought-after features in Patek Philippe watches, this particular example holds special historical significance, as Paris and London are listed under the same time zone. This is because Paris adopted Central European Time in June 1940 due to the Second World War.