There is an old saying. ‘Build it and they will come’. And come they did.

This year Patek Philippe chose Munich to stage an exhibition that was truly exceptional.

Once inside of the exhibition, you thought you were in a Patek Philippe Salon in Geneva or Paris rather than an exhibition hall. The effort Patek put in to display the history and DNA of this ‘greatest of watch brands’ was truly phenomenal. It also seems they brought almost half of the Museum in Geneva with them.

What was on display was unbelievable and rather than write a more elaborate introduction we will let the pictures speak for themselves with minimal commentary. A brief comment on the actual road trip perhaps first. Since I am based in Zurich and Munich is only 300km away, I chose on driving rather than flying.

Considering we were going to Munich, we thought we take a German car. One that is now nearly 60 years old.

We had to drive relatively slowly as this car has drum brakes and going faster than 120km/h on the German autobahn without disc brakes is asking for trouble unless your Juan Manuel Fangio.

Lets check the time- we don’t want to be late. The exhibition closes at 18:oo every day.

There are plenty of disadvantages of driving such an old car (1956).

You have to respect its age and therefore driving like you own a modern car is not an option. However, a big advantage of these cars is the respect they command.

The parking guard at the Bayerischer Hof garage gave us the best private parking space available and moved a modern Bentley GT out of the spot. Notice the guardhouse is just to the right of the car.

Luckily the exhibition was only 3min walking distance from the Hotel. The first hall of the exhibition was exactly like the main Patek Salon in Geneva on Rue du Rhone. In this part there were mostly modern watches, so we did not stay long.

One watch worth commenting on in the modern room: A world time below with an unusual not before seen dial.

This dial resembles the Bayerische Wappen or ‘coat of arms’. We assume this watch will only be available in Munich. Notice that Munich has displaced Paris on the dial.

Before we start the history tour, we must first start with one of the founders. Antoine Patek, a Polish immigrant who founded this watchmaker together with French watchmaker Adrienne Philippe.

Patek first displayed some fine and usual pocket watches, even some that were dated well before Patek Philippe even existed.

Below a fine minute repeating wristwatch from 1957. This reference is 2524-1.

The next few pictures are watches that belong to the all time great of Patek Philippe and are among the most sought after wristwatches in the world. Below a fine Patek Ref 1518 in yellow gold.

Equally sought after is what many consider to be the most beautiful chronograph ever made by Patek: The legendary 2499. The dial looks grey but due to the lighting only. Please excuse the poor photography.

Next is a VERY RARE single button chronograph with split seconds function. The watch is from 1926/1927.

Below an unusual and rare wristwatch with world globe on dial from 1957 in Rose Gold. Reference 2481

Next a stunning pocket watch with world time function. The Enamel work is a piece of art. Watch is from 1949.

Below a set of dials being made for the Patek world time Enamel watches which is reference 5131. Patek only makes a few of these watches a year and they are extremely sought after by collectors.

The level of color richness on the Enamel dial is outstanding. No wonder demand is so much higher than the supply.

These dials eventually make their way into watches like this one below. The world time reference 5131.