For years, Princess Diana wore this watch.  It is gold with a round
face.  Sometimes the face is white; others gold.  It could be a Patek
Philippe.....I don't know.  It also has a gold bracelet. It is very
simple.  Can someone help identify?  Thanks.  Mary Shawn
www.villagephotos.com/pubbrowse.asp?folder_id=1064937

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Request for Question Clarification by sublime1-ga on 29 Oct 2004 22:47 PDT

mcow...

From the second image, it seems clear that this is a
Patek Phillipe watch. What sort of identification are
you seeking beyond that?

sublime1-ga

---

Request for Question Clarification by sublime1-ga on 29 Oct 2004 23:39 PDT

mcow...

Of course, I meant to spell it Patek Philippe. In looking
a little further, I did find some images of men's watches
made by them which are similar in design:

http://www.orologimeccanici.com/patekphilippe.asp

http://nurk.no/patek.htm

Yet, it is doubtful that that specific watch will be in 
evidence on the internet. So many watches were made by
this firm, that books have been written to assist in
identifying them. There is a website for the company, at:
http://www.patek.com/

You might find that contacting them is your best route to
getting any further information on this watch. I'm sure
they will be happy to assist you, especially if it was
designed for, or worn by, a celebrity of the stature of
Princess Diana.

Let me know where this takes you, and where it leaves the
question.

sublime1-ga

mcow...

Thanks very much for requesting that I post an answer
(which is how you will come to be billed, per your query).
I will summarize and add to my original responses here,
for the sake of future readers.

From the second image, it seems clear that this is a
Patek Philippe watch. In looking a little further, I 
did find some images of men's watches made by them 
which are similar in design. Both sites are in another
language, so I can't tell you any more than that:

http://www.orologimeccanici.com/patekphilippe.asp

http://nurk.no/patek.htm

Yet, it is doubtful that that specific watch will be in 
evidence on the internet (I did search through all 272
images available on Google Images). So many watches were
made by this firm, that books have been written to assist
in identifying them. They are truly a prolific company.
There is a website for the company:
http://www.patek.com/

You might find that contacting them is your best route to
getting any further information on this watch. I'm sure
they will be happy to assist you, especially if it was
designed for, or worn by, a celebrity of the stature of
Princess Diana.

Their official contact page is here:
http://www.patek.com/WEB/Relation/ContactUs.aspx


Another possible resource would be some of the books
written about these watches:

'Patek Philippe: Wrist Watches, Pocket Watches, Clocks : 
 Identification and Price Guide : Retail & Vintage Prices :
 Book 1' by Roy Ehrhardt, Joe Demesy, is currently unavailable:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0913902608/104-1469193-6483113?v=glance

'Patek Philippe: Geneve : Montres-Bracelets Armbanduhren
 Orologi Da Polso  Wristwatches' by Martin Huber, Alan Banbery
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/3906500039/104-1469193-6483113?v=glance

'Patek Philippe: Complicated Wrist Watches' by Leonardo Arte,
may not be a good resource, since your watch has an elegant
simplicity which may be off the topic of this book.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/customer-reviews/382901449X/104-1469193-6483113?%5Fencoding=UTF8


Please do not rate this answer until you are satisfied that  
the answer cannot be improved upon by way of a dialog  
established through the "Request for Clarification" process. 
 
sublime1-ga


Searches done, via Google:

"patek philippe"
://www.google.com/search?q=%22patek+philippe%22

"patek philippe" site:www.amazon.com
://www.google.com/search?q=%22patek+philippe%22+site%3Awww.amazon.com


and, via Google Images:

"patek philippe"
http://images.google.com/images?q=%22patek+philippe%22

Excellent response to my nebulous question....and very, very prompt. 
This researcher went far and above original inquiry and found a number
of sources which I can utilize.  This is an top-notch individual who
states and clarifies facts, finds other links and was clearly not
about to stop until I was satisfied--which I was.  I would like to
convey my thanks and recommend this individual's services to others as
well as to anyone at Google who oversees the activities of its
researchers.  Thank you.  Mary Shawn LaViolette

Maybe it's custom?

Dear Sublime-1,

Yes, this is what I was looking for--a clarification on being a Patek.
 I was hoping for a model number but the company might be the best
route, per your suggestion, as it is older (70s-80s) and there are so
many variations!  It's amazing, isn't it.  Could you send me a
bill/invoice or whatever it is I pay off of when question receives
appropriate answer?  Thank you very much!

I would also like to thank the other respondent but I don't think it
was custom made.  But thank you for your input.

Mary Shawn

Hello again mcow-ga;

As I understand it, Princess Diana?s wristwatch was a unique creation
by Jaeger-LeCoultre, one of (if not the only one ever) made in gold.

?The LeCoultre piece originally surfaced through one of Mendelson's
buyers in London, who found it in a parcel of low-value items offered
at a flea market auction. "We opened the watch up and discovered it
was a LeCoultre," recalls Mendelson. "We gave the numbers to
LeCoultre, and it was then we learned that only two of these watches
were ever made. It was truly like finding a Rembrandt in the cellar.
If the movement alone were duplicated today, it would cost nearly as
much as the vintage watch. I understand Princess Diana owns a similar
watch in gold."

THE ENDURING BEAUTY OF VINTAGE JEWELRY
http://www.worldandi.com/specialreport/1990/december/Sa17170.htm

Let me know if this answers your question.

Regards;
Tutuzdad-ga

Dear Tutzad-ga,

I just read your comments and I thank you for them.  Yes, Diana had a
custom Jaeger le Coultre worth hundreds of thousands of pounds; it was
on her wrist when she died.  I was looking for information on the
Patek Philippe she wore almost daily till the end of her life when she
began ocassionally wearing Cartier Tank Francaise and others.  I will
try and post photos; the ones at the beginning are the less costly,
often worn Patek; the bottom photos have one of the custom JLC in
silver.  Take care.  Mary Shawn  PS  Thank you for your help.

www.villagephotos.com/pubbrowse.asp?folder_id=985171

Mary...

Thanks very much for the high praise, five stars, and the generous tip!

sublime1-ga

mcow-ga,

I run a large vintage watch business on eBay.  I can tell you that
your Patek Philippe watch is a standard production model called the
"Ellipse".  I have a watch in stock that is absolutely identical to
the picture you submitted.  The model is actually quite common and
there are several variants of this model produced by Patek over the
years.  I believe that yours is a PP1218 Reference 3545.  It is
powered by a caliber 23-300 18 jewel manual wind movement.  This
particular model generally sells today for between $2,000-$3,000 on
eBay, though a retail shop might mark it as high as $5,000. Production
of your watch is probably around 1969.

The Patek Philippe factory (www.patek.ch) can/will generally answer
questions about date of manufacture and the retailer the watch was
sold to.  They will need the movement serial number in order to
research their files.  The serial number is located INSIDE the watch
case on the movement.  Your local watch shop can open the case and
help you find it.

Regarding the JLC watch that Diana also wore (shown in one of your
pictures posted), it is a JLC Caliber 101.  The white gold (or
platinum) model that you show in your pictures looks to be a pretty
standard JLC Joaillerie Riviere 101.  The post by Tutuzdad-ga claims
that this watch was "custom-made", and one of the "only one ever made
in gold".  I don't find either of these claims to be accurate.  While
the factory will make slight custom modifications upon buyer request,
this looks to be a standard production model that is shown in your
pictures.  Definitely not custom-made, but perhaps it had some custom
engravings, special stones, etc.  This model is only available in
solid gold (most common) or platinum, never steel or a lesser metal. 
So the claim that it was one of the only ones made in gold is
incorrect.

The caliber 101 was introduced by JLC in 1929 as "the world's smallest
mechanical wind movement".  It still holds that title today and the
caliber 101 is still in production.  The skeletonized version of the
caliber 101 also holds the title of "world's lightest (weight)
movement".  The caliber 101 is a standard production watch and many
hundreds (or perhaps as many as a few thousand) have been made by JLC
over the years.  I have personally owned 6 orf these JLC caliber 101
watches.  They're relatively low-production (compared to other JLC
models) and rare because of the price, but they're out there.  A
typical caliber 101 watch would sell for $3,500-$5,000 in the early
1950s.  Today, new models containing the caliber 101 start at around
$80,000 and go up to several hundreds of thousands of dollars.  Price
is dependant on the diamonds/precious stones mounted in the case.

Hope this helps.

Greg

Dear WatchGuy,

Thank you for your comments and insights.  I have subsequently
purchased an 18K gold piaget which is similar in style but now that
you have identified the watch, have an interest in an ellipse.  Do you
ever accept trade-ins plus any additional monies for your watches as I
don't want both watches.  If so, please let me know at
maryelc14@aol.com.

Thank you!