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These are perhaps two of the most over-used words in the watch hobby: iconic and underrated. Brands love to call their watches iconic. Even the annual GPHG competition includes a category named "Iconic". Their definition is: watches from an emblematic collection that has been exercising a lasting influence on watchmaking history and the watch market for more than 20 years. Watch enthusiasts like to describe their watches as underrated and demand more recognition. I gather that I'm no exception.

Patek Philippe invented the annual calendar and released the first model in 1996. Today, this complication has become one of the cornerstones of the Patek Philippe collection. 19 models offered by Patek today include the annual calendar function. Patek enjoys a huge lead in this complication while other brands starting to catch up. To me, Patek annual calendars, first released 27 years ago, are iconic.

Reference 5146, 5205, and 5396 had been the “Three Marketeers” of the Patek annual calendar lineup in the last decade. In April 2021, 4947/1A made its debut while the curtain was lowered for 5146. A number of watch media reported on this release as part of the Watches and Wonders coverage. These were write-ups pretty much based on photos and specifications supplied by Patek. After that, there were zero, none, nil in-depth or hands-on reviews on 4947/1A I could found. Apparently, the new member of the three marketeers of the Patek annual calendars didn’t get the spotlight it deserved. Compared to other much hyped integrated stainless steel models from the Holy Trinity of watch brands, 4947/1A flies under the radar and is quite over-looked.

Could this brilliant yet underrated annual calendar join the rank of iconic watches one day? Will my review help shed some light on this topic? Let dive into it and see.

The History of Annual Calendar

A normal watch with a date function displays date from 1 to 31. There are five months in a year that are shorter than 31. The wearer has to advance the date display five times a year. The same is true for the more complicated triple calendar or complete calendar.

The perpetual calendar solves this nicely and takes care of the leap year too. No date adjustment is needed ever. However, a perpetual calendar is very complicated and expensive. For example, The Patek Calatrava 6119R with a date comes with a movement of 164 parts and costs around $30K. The Patek 5327R perpectual calendar is powered by a movement with 275 parts and costs $100K. It was a huge financial chasm to cross if wishing to upgrade from a basic date watch.

Patek Philippe offered a brilliant solution to fill this gap, which was the invention of an annual calendar. As the name indicates, there is only one date correction needed every year. The wearer has to advance the date at the end of February to March 1st. This ingenious idea added great intelligence to the mechanical watches at a reasonable price. Patek's annual calendar 5396R for example costs $55K, about half the price of a perpectual calendar. The invention was the result of a joint program between Patek Philippe and Geneva School of Engineering. For more detail, please check out this fascinating article by Collectability.

The awesome value proposition instantly propelled this complication to great success. Other watch brands must be wondering why they failed to think of this too. They were hindered perhaps by the Patek patents to catch up quickly. My guess is that Patek could only patent the specific implementation of the annual calendar, but not the general idea. Other brands could come up with their own mechanical solutions. In any case, a patent is valid for 20 years in most cases any way.

Eventually, a few watch brands launched their own annual calendars. There are three intriguing models I’d like to mention here. First, Rolex's Sky-Dweller comes with its own clever design for the month display and the command ring control. Lange's offering includes a rare and highly desirable zero-reset function. The PanoMaticCalendar from Glashütte Original presents a dazzling dial design. Please be sure to check them out as listed below. It is wonderful to see the whole category take off.

Top annual calendars offered by other brands

However, Patek Philippe's clear lead in annual calendar is nothing short of formidable. This was due to the first-mover's advantage, but also Patek's unwavering devotion to this complication over the last 27 years.

Patek Philippe Lineup of Annual Calendars

The annual calendar has become a cornerstone of Patek Philippe's wristwatch offerings. A wide selections of stand-alone annual calendar models have been available since 1996. The offerings included both dress watches and even sports models. Another successful approach is to combine annual calendar with other popular complications. Please see below for the most recent models under these two categories.

Stand-alone annual calendars

• 5146 J/R/G: 2005 - 2021, 3 sub-dials for day/month/moon, date window, a power reserve indicator

• 5396 R/G: 2006 - now, 3 apertures for day/date/month, moon phase, 24-hour

• 5205 R/G: 2010 - now, 3 apertures for day/date/month, moon phase, 24-hour

• 5726 A/1A: 2010 - now, part of Nautilus collection

• 5235 R/G: 2011 - now, in a regulator layout

• 4947 & 4948 R/G: 2015 - now, ladies' annual calendar with moon phase

Annual calendars combined with another complication

• 5905 P/R/1A, 2015 - now, combined with flyback chronograph

• 5326 G, just launched in 2022, combined with travel time

It is amazing that the annual calendar is featured so extensively in the Patek current collection. It has become such a quintessential Patek complication that any Patek collectors and watch lovers cannot ignore.

For at least a decade starting in 2010, there were three prominent annual calendar references among this impressive lineup. The three marketeers were reference 5146, 5205 and 5396. Various models with different case materials, straps and bracelets were introduced. These references turned into timeless designs which were the most desirable models to own. The oldest reference 5146 was first released in 2005 and the dial design (like the fonts) looked almost a bit “vintage”. The phase-out of 5146 from the catalogue left room for a new marketeer to come on to the stage.

Introducing the 4947/1A

Patek Philippe ended the reference 5146 in April 2021, including 6 models of annual calendars in white gold, rose gold and yellow gold. It was a fantastic 17-year run. Patek definitely needed a new, more modern design to fill this void. The successor was 4947/1A-001, a stunning blue beauty in steel!

We may see a little resemblance in the sub-dial designs between 5146 and 4947. One difference is that 3-letter abbreviations are used instead of 2-letter ones for the day sub-dial. There are now dots between these abbreviations in the day sub-dial too. The changes resulted in more symmetry between the day and month sub-dials in 4947. The most eye-catching feature is no double the blue fabric patterns for the dial. We will get into that shortly.

4947/1A is the first annual calendar from Patek in a round, Calatrava-type stainless steel case. The previous dress models were all cased in precious medals. Furthermore, the integrated steel bracelet was newly designed and equipped for 4947/1A exclusively. A steel bracelet is what "1A" stands for in the reference number.

A stainless steel case is very rare for the Patek Philipps dress models. Among the 32 models in the "Complications" collection, there are only 3 steel case models. They are 5212A, 4947/1A and 5905/1A. No double, these models are highly sought-after.

Now, here come the new three marketeers of Patek annual calendars: 5205R/G, 5396 R/G and 4947/1A!

Beautiful Shantung Dial Design

The blue, vertical and horizontal fabric patterns of the 4947/1A dial are the most eye-catching feature. Patek refers to this satin-finish as "Shantung" finish. The first use of "Shantung" finish for a Patek watch was the 4947G-010 released in 2017. Here, the color is ivory white for the ladies' model. The blue color of the 4947/1A represents more appropriately a unisex model, as intended by Patek. After all, a pair of blue jeans is commonly worn by both women and men. If we need a nickname for 4947/1A, I would nominate "Levi's".

It was a surprise for me to find out that Rolex made "Shantung" dials for its Datejust and OP models in 1960s and 70s. Below in the picture is a lovely ref. 1600 Datejust featuring a “Shantung” dial with a purplish blue hue. A super rare piece indeed. Remarkably, Swiss designers separated by half a century had found inspirations from the exquisite Shantung silks from the Far East.

Calendar Sub-dial Design Choices

A seasoned watch collector I respect greatly shared a comment with me that the 4947 sub-dial layout "is much too clustered in the center". The same opinion was echoed in a watch forum discussion on 4947/1A. The comment is true especially when comparing with the dial design of Patek 5327G perpetual calendar, for example. To me, it might have been a deliberate design trade-off.

Three sub-dials are used to display day of the week, month and moon phase on both watches. The main difference is the way the date is shown. On 5327, it is a pointer-date on the moon-phase sub-dial. On 4947, the date is displayed in an aperture at 6 o'clock. With the date on 6 o'clock, the three sub-dials are forced to move a bit closer towards the center. It seems that the design choice is to use pointer date for perpectual calendars, while using the aperture date for annual calendars.

As there are more information to display for a perpectual calendar, the design choice makes sense to me. The somewhat clustering of the sub-dials in 4947 created more empty space around the hour markers in the peripheral of the dial. Thus, the layout makes the time and date stand out more and easier to read at a glance. Over the course of a day, the wearers tend to look at the time and date more often than looking at the month, day or moon-phase, I assume. For this reason, the design choice for 4947 is a good one to me.

A new, integrated steel bracelet

This watch is equipped with a new integrated and entirely polished bracelet. It consists of five rows of fully polished links. A patented fold-over clasp is secured with four independent catches. This steel bracelet is the only five link bracelet in the whole Patek collection now. What a beauty to behold! The stunning and exclusive bracelet makes 4947/1A stand out much more.

Movement 324 S QA LU

The 4947/1A is powered by movement "324 S QA LU", which is based on "324 S C". Here, QA refers to Annual calendar (Quantième annuel). LU refers to Moon phase indicator (Phases de lune). There are 328 parts and 34 jewels in this QA movement.

Concluding Remarks

The external clock at many Patek Philippe boutiques is one based on none other than the 5396G annual calendar. You will see it at the Bond Street London, JW Marriott Hotel Kuala Lumpur and many other prime locations all over the world. Reference 5396, the big brother of the three marketeers, has reached a shining iconic status. The other big brother, reference 5025, has captured the hearts of watch lovers and collectors with its mesmerizing dial and sculptured lugs.

How about 4947/1A then? Will it achieve the same greatness in 10 years?

I don’t have a crystal ball but I’m biased :). There are just so much to love about the 4947/1A, the elegant and dazzling “Levi’s”. It is the embodiment of horology, art and craftsmanship at the highest level. A beauty to behold - with a stunning dial with “Shantung” patterns, exquisite movement design and finishing, and a gorgeous bracelet! The dial design of 4947/1A traced its root in 5146, yet overall it is a modern interpretation for the new generation of watch collectors. The annual calendar is perhaps the most programatic complication for daily wearers and a milestone in modern watchmaking history. 4947/1A is indeed a very significant piece coming from the inventor of annual calendar and a very rare steel dress piece from Patek to boot. Last but not least, the 38mm case size is at a sweet spot when the taste for watch size is trending smaller.

Now you know my prediction. Are you convinced? Drop me a comment and thanks for reading this far :).

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