Launched in 1951, at 35.5mm, reference 2508 was quite a large timepiece for the time, when typical gentlemen’s wristwatches measured a mere 33mm diameter. The model was intended for a more intensive and professional use than the usual Patek Philippe dress watch, even featuring a screw-down case back, enabling the watch to be water resistant - a feature found on a small minority of vintage Patek Philippe’s production. Reference 2508 most notably features center seconds, powered by the calibre 27SC (SC for Secondes au Centre), one of the most appreciated vintage, manually-wound, center seconds calibers made by any manufacturer. The caliber 27SC also serves the base for the movements used in some of the most hallowed complicated Patek Philippe vintage models such as the reference 2497. The Taubert-sourced case features the gently downturned and curvaceous lugs seen on the venerable reference 1463.

Since watch collecting came into vogue in the 1980s, collectors have competed passionately for the rarest and best-preserved iterations of these oversized Calatravas with center seconds, such as the present 2508, the reference 570, and the reference 565, with a case also produced by Taubert. The consignor of the present lot is himself a veteran collector of vintage wristwatches, and has time and time again found himself captured by the very best examples of these most renowned Calatravas. The present example with luminous dial features a most-likely unpolished case, with crisp hallmark to the lugs and caseband, and a further sharp “18K” stamp to the outer case rim, indicating import to the United States – a fact further underscored by the HOX import code on the movement. The state of preservation of the dial echoes that of the case, with beautiful raised hard enamel printing perfectly preserved. A small area of the dial has taken on a slightly darker tone beneath where the hands were, indicating that the watch remained unused for a long period of time. Fresh-to-the-market, it is the 22nd example of a yellow gold 2508 with luminous dial to be identified.