The Patek Philippe 3970 is a 36mm perpetual calendar chronograph, a part of the family of the 1518 and 2499 (and thereafter, the 5970). The 3970 was manufactured between 1986 and 2014 with cases in white, yellow, and rose gold, as well as platinum. The Patek Philippe 3970 houses the calibre 27-70 Q, based on the Lemania 2310, and is the first Patek chronograph that was not based on a Valjoux ebauche.
In this section I am focused on very specific version which is my personal preference – the black dial platinum with baton or Arabic numeral dials (no diamond marks). While there were four different series of the Patek Philippe 3970, I believe that pieces with these characteristics fall solely into the fourth series (1995-2004, approximately 2,000 pieces, which shares the baton hands of the third series, but a deployant clasp). There are a large number of different appended numbers within this reference, and hopefully I’ll eventually make sense of all the differences, including those that are limited editions and unique pieces. Please don’t hesitate to drop me an email to help me fill in the blanks (or correct where I’ve gone wrong).
Stunner…
Photo: Phillips, The New York Watch Auction: EIGHT, June 10, 2023