What Makes The Padellone Ref. 8171 So Special?

July 14, 2020

Last week, a radio station invited me for an interview about a special Padellone 8171 offered at PAN Amsterdam, a popular art and antiques fair. The hosts asked me what made the watch so special and why it was on offer at the fair.Image: Amsterdam Watch Company Padellone ref. 8171PAN Amsterdam will run from November 24th to December 1st,?but the Padellone ref. 8171 has already been sold (it was listed for just less than $200,000). It was on offer through Amsterdam Watch Company, which has been an exhibitor at PAN Amsterdam for several years. I was asked if a watch belongs at the PAN fair, but since it is about art and antiques, I guess it makes sense. And since it was sold on the first day, theres proof that PAN visitors enjoy vintage watches. At least one of them did!A ad from The Sun-Herald, November 18th, 1951 (NSW, Australia)A very low production number for a watchThe more important question is what makes the Perpetual Padellone 8171 so special. According to the seller and many other websites (which seem to repeat what others have written elsewhere), only produced 1,000 examples of the ref. 8171. Ben Clymer from Hodinkee claims that the production number was slightly higher at 1,200, 50% of which was for the ref. 8171 in stainless steel. In the grand scheme of things, whether its 1,000 or 1,200, that number is nothing compared to modern production numbers from The Crown in Geneva. It makes Padellone ref. 8171 a very rare coveted by collectors.Image: Amsterdam Watch CompanyA beautiful faceThe appreciation for this watch is about more than just the low production number. Its also because this is one of the very few models with a triple calendar and moonphase complication. The other thing is that this 8171, nicknamed Padellone (frying pan in Italian), looks different from most models due to the dial shape and size. When produced this watch between 1949 and 1952, the Oyster case and even Oyster Datejust cases had already been in production for a while. The non-Oyster 8171 case not only looks different from those but is also relatively large in diameter. The Padellone measures 38mm wide, making it 2mm larger than the Datejust. Furthermore, it was larger than the other complicated with the triple calendar and moonphase complication at the time, the Stelline ref. 6062. Additionally, the latter had an Oyster case, just like the Datejust.Caliber A295 CPL - Image: Bonhams caliber A295 CPLInside the Padellone ref. 8171 is caliber A295 CPL. This is an 18-jewel self-winding movement with day, date, month, and moonphase complications. The movement doesn t have any fine decoration. It looks rather industrial, you could say. Therefore, the attractiveness of this watch is in the case, dial, and complication rather than in the movement s decoration. That said, the movement is incredibly reliable and a certified chronometer, so it deserves credit.Image: Amsterdam Watch CompanyThe 8171 case and dialThe dial sits in an elegant 38mm case and has?two apertures below 12 oclock for the day and month, a date scale printed on the perimeter, and a moonphase aperture inside the sub-seconds register at 6 o clock. The applied gold hour markers are faceted, and above the day and month apertures is an applied logo. Below the apertures is the wordmark and Perpetual, indicating it houses a self-winding movement. The hour and minute dagger hands are gilt, while the date hand is steel with a blue triangular tip. The small running seconds hand is also gilt. Within the sub-dial is a mention of the movement being an officially certified chronometer. Finally, a gold bezel keeps the acrylic crystal in place.Image: Amsterdam Watch CompanySnap-in case back with (light) engravingsThis Padellone ref. 8171 has a flat and unsigned crown. On each side of the case, there are two micro-pushers to correct the calendar functions. On the snap-in case back, youll find two engravings - the coronet and the individual case number of the watch.Image: Amsterdam Watch CompanyThe original alligator strap and -signed buckleAmsterdam Watch Company, which sold the watch, says the case is still very thick and sharp. All engravings on the case back are still visible. It s an easy giveaway of a watch having been worn a lot (or polished too often) if these are hardly visible or even entirely gone. The creamy-looking dial developed a subtle patina, which is visible in the images. This particular Padellone example hails from 1951 and comes on its original 73-year-old alligator strap with a gold-plated -signed buckle.Image: Amsterdam Watch CompanyThe design of this with a triple calendar and moonphase complication is breathtaking. Its grail material for many vintage () collectors and rightfully so. Together with the 6062 (which had a slightly higher production number), these watches highlight a period long gone at .Amsterdam Watch Company informed us that this Padellone offered at the PAN Amsterdam fair found a new home with a watch collector. Congrats to the new owner!