Patek Philippe Nautilus Moon Phases 5712/1A-001

Description

• Asymmetrical Mastery

There are watches that embody the very notion of balance, between utility and aesthetics, between modernity and heritage. The Nautilus Moon Phase, reference 5712/1A-001, is one of them. Designed by Gérald Genta in 1976 as a sport-chic response to precious metal watchmaking, the Nautilus has traversed decades without ever losing its legitimacy. In its 5712 iteration, it reveals a more poetic, more horological face, without ever straying from the refined elegance of the original design.

Introduced in 2006 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the line, the 5712/1A-001 adds to the original model’s simplicity a moon phase complication, a power reserve indicator and a date by hand. Yet there is no sense of overload here, the horizontally embossed blue-grey dial retains the reference’s signature asymmetry, a carefully orchestrated imbalance. Everything seems to have been placed by hand, almost instinctively, and yet nothing is out of place.

The 40 mm stainless steel case, water-resistant to 60 metres, alternates satin-brushed and polished finishes with artisanal precision. The edges are crisp, the surfaces perfectly tensioned. The integrated bracelet, supple and fluid, extends the line of the case without interruption. Each link is a reminder that at Patek Philippe, beauty allows no compromise, even in steel.

The dial, whose shade shifts from slate blue to charcoal grey depending on the light, is brought to life by three secondary displays. The power reserve at ten o’clock, slightly recessed, balances the date and moon phase at seven. The small seconds at four o’clock completes the composition. The layout is not symmetrical, but it is deeply harmonious.

At its heart beats the calibre 240 PS IRM C LU, equipped with a micro-rotor and visible through the sapphire caseback. It offers a power reserve of approximately 48 hours. Finely finished, fitted with a Gyromax balance and operating at 21,600 vibrations per hour, this ultra-thin movement allows the watch to maintain a restrained elegance on the wrist, with a thickness of just 8.8 mm.

Offered here in excellent condition, this 5712/1A-001 comes complete with its original set, dated 2010. A piece that seeks neither approval nor effect. It is destined for those who understand that in watchmaking, true significance lies not in symmetry, but in precision.