Released in 1932 and named after the cross that the Calatrava Knights paraded around Spain and Portugal during the 12th and 13th centuries, the Patek Philippe Calatrava was released as a simple timepiece with broad appeal that would help secure Patek Philippe's finances following Jean and Charles Henri Stern's investment in the brand in the same year. Designed with a strict Bauhaus-inspired aesthetic in mind, the Calatrava used, and continues to use, simplicity as its means of establishing intrigue around the craftsmanship required to construct such a stunning timepiece. Without a complicated movement or a busy design, collectors gravitate towards the Calatrava's clean aesthetic and practicality, and the ref. 3426 we have here embodies that same design language perfectly. Launched in the 1960s, the ref. 3426 features a traditional 32mm case that is only slightly larger than original Calatrava’s 31mm case, as used by the ref. 96. While svelte by today’s standards, the ref. 3426 merges the Calatrava's original design brief in its purest form with a slightly larger diameter that will allow contemporary collectors to enjoy to this intensely elegant 18kt yellow gold timepiece much in the same way that original buyers of the Calatrava would have back in the 1930s.

A timeless dress watch that has transcended watchmaking, the Calatrava is a timepiece that will always stay in fashion, as proven by how much modern collectors still enjoy references like the ref. 3426 amongst plenty of others.