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The performance-optimised 5212A Caliber “ 26-330, which premieres in this timepiece, is the apex of reliability ” All images: Patek Philippe 5212A Calatrava Weekly Calendar one-of-a-kind Ref. 2512, which was first created by the brand in 1955. The 2512 was actually also produced in steel, and this was a feather in Patek’s cap at the time – for most, limited production methods of the day made steel too complicated to work with. The brand’s coveted sports watch, the Gérald Genta-designed Nautilus, was a steel stronghold at that time. With a present day scarcity of those steel Caltravas to satisfy collectors, the <strong>2019</strong> iteration will likely be in high demand. (In a casual, post- Baselworld video recap, Hodinkee founder and respected watch savant Ben Clymer revealed, “I can tell you, based on feedback from a few retail friends, that the demand for this watch is ‘bananas.’”) The 1955 original had a large, 46mmsizing, and a sign of the modernity of this travel-friendly interpretation is its more restrained 40mm case size. Remaining with aesthetics, the dial is worth further inspection. From centre-out, the four facets indicate the day, week number (up to 53), date and month, while the indexes are, in fact, blackened 18k white gold. “Stacking the five hands [hours, minutes, sweeping seconds, day and week] was a technical challenge,” admits Philip Barat, Head of Watch Development at Patek Philippe. The truly modern element is the Calatrava’s all-new new function for calendar watches: a semi-integrated mechanism which, in addition to the day of the week and the date, displays the current week number. The latter detail holds more functionality than it may first seem. The timepiece could have particular appeal, for instance, in numericallyinclined cultures such as Sweden where weeks – among other measurements – are referred to by number. (For orientation, this month’s edition of <strong>AIR</strong> was printed in Week 18 of the year). Meanwhile, the need for a 53 rd week inclusion is due to an additional week occuring every five to six years; the Calatrava’s timely release date of 2020 (a year when the extra week pops up) will cater to this occasional calendar quirk. Powering the timepiece is the 5212A / Caliber 26-330, which has a minimum of 35 and a maximum of 45 hour power reserve, and also caters to unidirectional winding. Barat describes the “performanceoptimised” movement which premieres in this timepiece as “the apex of reliability.” A friction spring, just one of the changes, “reduces seconds-hand chatter,” he explains. “Friction costs torque and energy.” In all, it’s an idiosyncratic release from one of the masters of the dress watch, and though historically inspired, the <strong>2019</strong> Calatrava is a bold direction for the fabled brand (which, along with Audemars Piguet and Vacheron Constantin, is among the ‘Holy Trinity’ of luxury watchmakers). Granted, the omission of precious materials means that the new steel Calatrava may not be the rarest of them all, but it’s easy to see how this charming Patek release has left industry observers ‘week’ at the knees. 33