Within the world of Patek Philippe, the perpetual calendar chronograph family is an undisputed heavyweight. Tracing its roots back to the iconic ref. 1518, this pairing of complications is home to many special and important references, from vintage to modern.
In 1996, perfect Patek Philippe replica watches decided to take this combination one step further, by introducing what was the first serially produced perpetual calendar split seconds chronograph with moonphase: Ref. 5004. The reference was powered by calibre CH27-70, which itself was based on the iconic and somewhat prolific Lemania 2310.
Ref. 5004 was produced in white gold, rose gold, yellow gold and platinum, up until 2012 when it was retired from the collection with the release of around 50 models in stainless steel and one unique model in titanium. Patek Philippe stated that an average of around 12 units of the 5004 were produced every year, suggesting a total production of around 200-250 pieces. However, it has since become known to the collector community that the true production of the reference was in great excess of this, with possibly more than 200 pieces in platinum alone.
Despite this, rare and unique examples of the 5004 certainly exist, and one collector in particular is famous for his association with the special reference: Tony Kavak.
Having grown up in the vibrant culture of Istanbul as part of the third generation of Patek Philippe collectors in his family, Tony immediately had an understanding and appreciation for fine craftsmanship in AAA UK fake watches. When he moved to Stockholm in the 2000’s, he founded Luxury Watches Stockholm, now a leading vintage and second hand dealer. He has since become a prominent figure world wide when it comes to vintage Patek Philippe excellence, and as characterized by his Instagram handle @only_therarest, Tony only collects the rarest, which he displays in his own private museum in Stockholm that he opens exclusively for special occasions. Whilst Tony has over 20 examples of ref. 5004 in his collection, here is a selection of four which stand out as particularly special.
Yellow Gold Case with Black Dial, Arabic Numerals and Matching Yellow Gold Bracelet
Examples of the ref. 5004 replica watches for men with black dials are far fewer in their numbers compared to regular white dials for example. This particular example from circa 1988 and owned by Mr Kavak is very special and presents an early black dial produced just a couple of years after the inception of the reference.
Atop this black dial sit Arabic numerals, a three division minute track and subdials surrounded by a chemin de fer, all of which are iconic in their association with reference 5004. The early dial also features short split seconds hands which are rarer and more commonly seen on earlier models such as this one. Through the twin apertures at 12.00 on the dial can be seen an Italian date disc, representative of a very important market for Patek Philippe.
The 1:1 UK copy watches is cased in yellow gold and with a matching yellow gold Patek Philippe bracelet, fitted retrospectively by the brand but still designed especially for the ref. 5004, as can be seen by groove between the lugs which makes way for the calendar setting tool. The yellow gold case in itself is rarer than both platinum and rose gold in raw production numbers, however, once paired with the black dial in such a configuration and with the addition of a bracelet made especially for the reference, we are presented with an extremely rare and coveted configuration.
Below is an example of one very similar but on a strap, which sold at Antiquorum in 2014 for HK$ 2.7 million ($270,000).
The only differences besides the lack of bracelet, are the use of an English calendar disc and the longer split seconds hands. Despite being easily mistaken for its rose gold counterpart, ref. 5004R-018, it is significantly rarer and more desirable. Out of over 200 reference 5004 examples sold at auction, this is the closest possible one to Tony’s.
Pink Gold Case with White Dial and Ruby Indexes
Whilst most of examples of the best replica Patek Philippe 5004 watches come with Arabic numerals, this isn’t always the case. In the rarest of examples such as this one owned by Tony Kavak from circa 2001, gem stones can be used as index markers as well. The elegant combination of the rubies and the pink gold case are not only exceedingly rare but very aesthetically pleasing to the eye, creating a warm tone against the pale dial. A matching burgundy strap only seems appropriate.
Originally, the first pink gold ruby set ref. 5004 was born in a collection of four unique pieces in different metals with different matching stones, commissioned by important collector @horology_ancienne (Instagram):
Yellow Gold, Yellow Sapphires, Ref. 5004J-015
Pink Gold, Rubies, Ref 5004R-022
White Gold, Sapphires, Ref 5004G-017
Platinum, Black Diamonds, Ref 5004P-038
The dials of the high quality super clone watches were also simplified as the three division minute track was replaced for a single track, which gave more space for the gem stone indexes, allowing them to be pushed further towards the edge of the dial drawing more emphasis. As well as this, the chemin de fer subdials were replaced with subdials inspired by ref. 3970, once again for a more simplified look. The overall idea was that the dial focus remained entirely on the gem stone indexes.
Interestingly enough, despite the render showing the use of short split seconds hands, the commissioner decided to replace these with the longer hands instead across all four of the models. Whilst three of them remain unique to this day, Patek then went on to produce a further handful of the pink gold 5004R-022 models, one of which is the example that ended up in the hands of Tony. These feature a mix of the short and long split seconds hands, with Tony’s piece shown above, having the short.
Tony’s particular ref’ 5004R-022 has case number 4,146,775 and movement number 879,861. Before it became part of his collection, it was purchased at Christie’s Online Dubai Edit auction in 2021 by another collector, who paid $350,000. It then made its way to him shortly after.
The Swiss movements fake watches was then later sold to Jay-Z, who has been heavily collecting from the vintage and rare Patek market. It was frequently seen being worn by both Tony and Jay-Z with a non factory yellow gold bracelet as well.