Presiding amongst the most luxurious and best-known watchmakers on Earth, Patek Philippe's reputation as one of the finest watchmaking Maison's around is not lost on the industry. Thanks to a history filled with technical innovation, beautiful timepieces, and artisanal craftsmanship, their quality is well-established. Amongst their most famous and traditional complications is the perpetual calendar, a movement designed to display the month, day, and date correctly throughout the entire year, including the month of February, taking into account the leap year every four years. Within this complicated family of watches is the lesser-known ref. 5940G, a beautiful and equally fascinating timepiece that I am delighted to present to you here.
Starting with perhaps its most notable piece of design, the ref. 5940G features a unique cushion-shaped case crafted from 18ct white gold that was inspired by the 1920's case design that Patek often used for their early classical watches. Polished across the entirety of its surface and with soft lugs that flow from mid-case to lug tip, the ref. 5940G's construction is easy on the eye and comfortable on the wrist as its 37mm x 44.6mm profile fits snug thanks to the ref. 5940G's gently downturned lugs.
Matching its white gold case, the ref. 5940G also features an opaline dial with applied white gold Breguet numerals that feed the heritage-inspired theme. With its stepped subdials at 3 and 9 o'clock containing the day, a dual-time display, the month and leap year indicator, the ref. 5940G's dial is legible despite the amount of information displayed. With a moon phase display harbored within the pointer date sub-dial, the ref. 5940G's dial layout complements the simplicity of its polished case tastefully and without drawing too much attention.
Powered by a modernized version of the truly spectacular micro-rotor cal. 240 Q movement, the ref. 5940G sports an exhibition caseback to display its immaculate finishing. With perlage applied to its main plate, hand-polished beveled edges for the bridges and countersinks, and Côtes de Genève taking up the movement's surface, the cal. 240 Q's aesthetic beauty is genuinely befitting of the unimaginable complexity that lies within this incredible timepiece and all that it stands for as an expression of Patek Philippe and their journey as one of watchmaking's most celebrated and iconic Maison's.
