At its grand exhibition held in Singapore this fall, Patek Philippe launched a series of six watches. Among them was an amazing new model embodying an exception to an aesthetic rule that the brand has been applying for many years : the Minute Repeater Tourbillon Singapore Special Edition 2019 has no dial, just a subdial serving as a small seconds scale at 6 o’clock. Patek Philippe normally does without this particular element only on its rare skeleton watches, which Ref. 5053R-010 is not. The brand does not generally reveal the inner workings of its watches through the front, but exclusively via the caseback. However, it so happens that the R TO 27 PS caliber has a great deal worth revealing beneath the hands : hammers and gongs, snails and other components that enable it to chime the time, as well as the reverse side of its one-minute tourbillon. The brand had thus far resisted the standard practice of providing a dial cut-out to highlight a rotating regulating organ. While connoisseurs will regard this as an enchanting interlude, since this is a 12-piece limited edition, it is in fact the first series to showcase this aesthetic principle, and there are more to come !
