We are pleased to present this Patek Philippe Calatrava reference 3796D in 18-carat yellow gold, with a white dial and Roman numerals, whose case and movement numbers date its production to circa 1993. It has reached us in an exceptional state of preservation – almost certainly never polished – with its original crocodile leather strap and pin buckle.
In 1932, the brothers Jean and Charles Stern took over Patek Philippe and launched the reference 96: the first model from the house to bear a reference number – a 30.5 mm round case with tapered lugs, a flat bezel, an uncluttered dial and small seconds at 6 o’clock. This Bauhaus-inspired design would remain in the catalogue, in various iterations, until 1973 – more than forty years – and would become the archetype of the dress watch.
Nine years after the 96 was withdrawn, Patek Philippe gave it a direct heir in 1982: the reference 3796. The same diameter, the same slightly curved tapered lugs, the same small seconds at 6 o’clock; only the crystal, now sapphire, and the movement changed. Produced until 1999, the 3796 is the last Calatrava produced in the historic size: the reference 5096 measures 33 mm, and the reference 5196 of 2004 even moves up to 37 mm. Offered in yellow, rose and white gold and in platinum, it comes with two bezels: flat and polished on the 3796, and guilloché with a “Clous de Paris”/“Pointe Diamant” pattern on the 3796D – “D” for décor, as on the 96D of 1934 and the 3520D, and soon on the 3919 – paired, as here, with a white dial and Roman numerals.
Beneath the caseback beats the caliber 215 PS, with manual winding and small seconds at 6 o’clock. Introduced in 1974, this 10-ligne (21.9 mm) movement is just 2.55 mm thick, has 18 jewels and beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour – it is the first Patek Philippe caliber to make the Gyromax balance beat at this frequency. Adjusted to heat, cold, isochronism and five positions, with a power reserve of approximately 44 hours, it bears the Geneva Seal. Fifty years later, it is still in production.
Our example is the 3796D just as enthusiasts seek it. The white dial is perfect: painted black Roman numerals, railway minute track, small seconds at 6 o’clock also encircled by a railway track, blackened baton hands, “SWISS” at 6 o’clock. Clous de Paris bezels are the first casualties of polishing, which rounds off the points and flattens the relief; not so here: every diamond point is crisp. The satin-finished case band, the guilloché bezel and the crisp delineations between them are intact, and the tapered lugs have retained their full thickness. The satin-finished snap-on caseback bears on the outside the Helvetia head and the 750 hallmark, deeply struck; its polished edge displays magnificent natural oxidation colouring of the alloy, prized by collectors, which only a case that has been neither rubbed nor polished for a very long time could have retained, and which we have deliberately left as it is. Inside the caseback, Geneva Key No. 23 designates the workshops of Eggly & Cie, the Geneva case maker behind the Calatrava 2407 “Sea Turtle”, next to the “18K 750” hallmark and the number 2’931’xxx. The movement, numbered 1’836’xxx, has been fully serviced by one of our experienced watchmakers and runs perfectly. The original Patek Philippe black crocodile leather strap has been worn and can be replaced at the request of the future owner; it is complemented by the original Patek Philippe 18-carat yellow gold pin buckle, hallmarked “PP Co.” and “750”. The watch is delivered in a brown leather Patek Philippe pouch, and accompanied by our Steel Warranty Card.
The references 3796 and 3796D combine the original 1932 design, embodied by the mythical reference 96, with the practicality of more modern production, thanks to the scratch-resistant sapphire crystal and the reliable caliber. The renewed interest in small-diameter dress watches has brought them back to the fore; examples that have never known the polishing wheel, however, are becoming rare. With its intact caseback, its perfect dial and its Clous de Paris bezel that stands out at first glance, ours is one of them. A Calatrava to be worn for years and handed down, equally suited to both men’s and women’s wrists.
