Patek Philippe

The Nautilus was first released in 1976 as Patek Philippe's response to the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. The Royal Oak, an avant-garde luxury stainless steel sports watch, was born out of AP's necessity to survive the Quartz Crisis. The Nautilus emerged as Patek Philippe's answer, aiming to compete head-to-head with AP's increasingly popular sports watch.

In 2006, Patek Philippe introduced the reference 5980 Nautilus at the Baselworld fair to commemorate the 30th anniversary of this iconic model. It was the first Nautilus to incorporate a chronograph complication. To streamline the dial layout, Patek chose to combine all of the chronograph functions into one co-axial subdial for elapsed minutes and hours, similar to the annual calendar ref. 5960 that is equipped with the same caliber. This innovative and unusual time display was a departure from the norm for the brand.

Originally produced in stainless steel with a black-blue dial, like the present example, the firm expanded on the design in 2010 by creating a grey hue for the dial color.