In this latest Celebrity Watch Spotting article, we take a look at the most complicated watch ever created by Patek Philippe and the few who have been fortunate enough to wear it!
As we all know, Patek Philippe is a paragon of excellence when it comes to horological complications. Since the brand’s inception in 1839, it has pushed the boundaries of watchmaking innovation while staying true to its traditional aesthetic designs. The timepieces created by Patek Philippe are celebrated for their intricate mechanisms and horological complications, such as perpetual calendars, minute repeaters, and tourbillons, all of which are crafted with an incredibly high level of finishing that very few brands can achieve.
Patek Philippe has been the “forward-thinker” when it comes to some of these complications as well, advancing the complication to be more efficient in modern-day watchmaking. In the case of the perpetual calendar complication, they were the first brand to take Thomas Mudge’s perpetual calendar pocketwatch and turn it into the first-ever wristwatch!
Related Reading: The Art of Complications – The Perpetual Calendar
Patek Philippe is certainly no stranger when it comes to equipping a timepiece with multiple complications. In fact, the brand has two timepieces in its collection that boast more than a dozen complications. The first is the Grand Complication Sky Moon Tourbillon (Ref 60023R-001). This timepiece features a hugely impressive 12 complications, which include a minute repeater with “cathedral” gongs, a tourbillon, a perpetual calendar with retrograde date hand, moon phases, sidereal time, and a sky chart that shows the phases and orbit of the moon.
Related Reading: The Art of Complications – The Minute Repeater
Patek Philippe’s most complicated watch is the Grandmaster Chime. This timepiece stands as the pinnacle of its ability to create extraordinary, complex watches with the highest level of craftsmanship. Patek Philippe introduced the Grandmaster Chime in 2014 as part of a limited-edition commemorative collection to celebrate the brand’s 175th anniversary. Only seven models of the Grandmaster Chime Ref. 5175 were made.
Sylvester Stallone showcasing his Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime for auction.
The Grandmaster Chime still to this day stands as a testament to high horology. The movement inside the Grandmaster Chime features no less than 20 complications: a Grande and Petite Sonnerie, minute repeater, alarm with time strike, date repeater, second-time zone with day/night indicator, instantaneous perpetual calendar (date on both sides, day of week, month, leap-year cycle, four-digit year display, 24-hour and minute subdial, moon phases), strikework mode display, strikework isolator display, alarm ON/OFF, crown position indicator and power reserve indicators for the movement and the strikework.
This, however, wasn’t the first time that Patek Philippe has created a timepiece boasting 20 complications. The brand has a history of creating super complications, with the Grandmaster Chime being the latest in the brand’s dedication to horological innovation and excellence.
Patek Philippe states that “In 1927, Henry Graves Jr., the famous American Financier, commissioned Patek Philippe to build the world’s most complicated pocket watch. Six years later, the ‘Graves Supercomplication‘, complete with 24 complications, was delivered to him. To celebrate the 150th anniversary, the Manufacture introduced the iconic Calibre 89. A technical achievement never-seen-before, featuring 33 complications and 1,728 individual parts. And to mark the new Millennium, the Star Caliber 2000, composed of 1,118 parts and featuring a total of 21 complications, joined the exceptional ‘Supercomplications’ collection.”
The Grandmaster Chime’s beating heart is the calibre 300 movement, which is made of a staggering 1,366 parts. Putting the movement together requires the highest level of watchmaking skill and expertise from the engineers and master watchmakers. With all these complications, the movement is still able to have a 3-day power reserve (72 hours). The movement has been patented for six innovations by Patek Phillipe, which are the alarm mechanism with time strike, isolation of the Grande Sonnerie in the Silence mode, the selection of strikework operating mode, a date repeater, a mechanism for a four-digit year display, as well as the strikework differential and reversible wristwatch case. If it isn’t clear already just how complex this model is, the development, production and full assembly of the timepiece took 100,000 hours!
One of Grandmaster Chime’s cool aesthetic features is its reversible face. Both faces have equal distinctiveness, making it wearable on either side. The only difference is that the crown flips from its standard “right” to left when the watch is turned over. When the crown is facing the right, the watch face shows the dial with time displays. When the watch is turned over, we get the full perpetual calendar counters along with a 24-hour dial and four-digit year display.
Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime References to date.
With just how complex this timepiece is, Patek Philippe has only produced this timepiece in limited numbers (understandably). But even with this limited quantity, only a handful have been spotted. Below, you’ll see the fortunate few who have been able to purchase Patek Philippe’s current most complicated watch.
Hun Sen
Former Prime Minister of Cambodia
Hun Sen was a former military general and also the former Prime Minister of Cambodia (1985-2023), who is currently serving as the president of the Senate. Hun Sen is the longest-serving head of government in Cambodia’s history. Through social media, we have been able to get a glimpse into the insane watch collection of Hun Sen, which includes Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Grand Complication, Vacheron Constantin Les Cabinotiers Grand Complication Phoenix, Richard Mille RM57-03 Tourbillon Sapphire Dragon and a host of other incredibly rare timepieces. Oh, I forgot to mention, he also has three variations of the Grandmaster Chime timepiece (including the 175th anniversary edition) in his collection!
Anant Ambani
Son of Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani
Anant Ambani is the youngest son of the biggest business tycoon in India, Mukesh Ambani. Recently, Anant Ambani has been making headlines for his wedding, which is actually coming up in 2-3 weeks in the middle of July. Amabni and his Fiance have been celebrating the upcoming wedding since May, which included a four-day cruise that made multiple stops along the Mediterranean. Being the son of a multi-billionaire also certainly helps if you love watches, especially high-horology. Anant Ambani, during his pre-wedding celebrations, has been spotted with some incredibly fine watches, one of them being the Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime 6300g.
Mark Wahlberg
American Actor
We all know Mark Wahlberg for his great acting that spans different genres, from action and comedy to drama. He is also quite the watch collection, with many of his timepieces being hard-to-acquire models such as the Patek Philippe Nautilus Tiffany, Rolex Daytona Rainbow, Patek Philippe Grand Complications, and a host of other rare Patek Philippe models including Patek Philippe Calatrava Handcrafted Guilloche. It’s safe to say however, that none of these timepieces comes close to the rarity of the Grandmaster Chime.
Thaksin Shinawatra
Thai Businessman and Politician
Thai businessman Thaksin Shinawatra was a former officer for the Thai Police from 1973-1987, they then turned his efforts into becoming a politician, which eventually led him to be the Prime Minister of Thailand from 2001 to 2006. He is arguably one of the richest people in Thailand after he founded mobile phone operator Advanced Info Service and the IT and telecommunications conglomerate Shin Corporation in 1987. With that extra bit of coin, he celebrated his hard efforts by indulging his passion for watches by acquiring the Grandmaster Chime 6300.
Samuel Eto’o
Cameroonian Football Administrator and Former Player
Samuel Eto’o is the current president of the Cameroonian Football Federation. The football player has won African Player of the Year a record four times (2003, 2004, 2005 & 2010). He has had quite a number of highlights in his professional career, playing for Chelsea, Barcelona, and InterMilan while also playing alongside the likes of Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi. He currently is the only footballer to win two European Continental Trebles back to back (Barcelona 08/09 & Inter Milan 09/10). His taste for watches is just as impressive as his illustrious footballing career. While he owns quite a few Pateks (Aquanaut & Nautilus’s), his most cherished timepiece is the Grandmaster Chime.
Jay-Z
American Rapper and Entrepreneur
Music superstar Jay Z has quite the taste for the luxury life, which includes cars and watches with fine craftsmanship. A testament to this is his unique Rolls Royce Boat Tail, which comes equipped with a bespoke Bovet 1822 timepiece. Jay Z’s taste in watches shows he knows the world of horology quite well. The model we are interested in, however, is the Grandmaster Chime, which was spotted on his wrist during the 65th Grammy Awards held last year!
Sylvester Stallone
American Actor and Filmmaker
Sylvester Stallone’s watch collection has made him quite an influential figure in the world of watches. He has quite the collection, varying from Panerai, Audemars Piguet, Cartier, Richard Mille, and Patek’s. Recently, Stallone made headlines for auctioning off some of his watch collection. What really got the buzz going, however, was the Grandmaster Chime that not many people knew he had. The watch was unworn by Stallone and still kept in its mint condition! How much did it auction for, you ask? An impressive $5.4 million USD!
