The Star Caliber 2000 is a proud milestone in the history of watchmaking and merits a publication of appropriate importance. Patek Philippe, in cooperation with Editions Scriptar (Switzerland), published a book devoted exclusively to this extraordinary pocket watch. The richly illustrated and painstakingly detailed work is divided into three chapters: the first sheds light on the development of the watch, the second is dedicated to the poetic aspects of the Star Caliber 2000; the third chapter presents explanations supported by diagrams and photographs which help the reader to understand the technological aspects and innovations which make the Star Caliber 2000 so unusual. The epic biography of this watch gives an opportunity to discover the enchanting world of the Star Caliber 2000. It offers newcomers to the world of complicated watches and specialists alike, insights into the philosophy of Patek Philippe: to safeguard and preserve the most eminent watchmaking traditions and, at the same time, to develop technical innovations that will delight future generations.
A DVD featuring films of the “Star Caliber 2000” and “10 Days” is included in the book, "A trip into the heart of a watch".

Anyone who owns or intends to acquire a Patek Philippe wristwatch will need to consult this book. Sister volume to Pocket Watches, Patek Philippe Wristwatches (by the same partnership of Huber and Banbery) made a major contribution to the growing popularity of fine wristwatches as collectors’ items by providing an illustrated reference to more than 400 timepieces. Photographs of the great and rare wristwatches convey the desirability of these priceless objects. Contributing illustrator, David Penney, has brought technical drawing to an art form with illustrations and diagrams showing how complicated mechanisms work. This book is very close in style to a catalog of Patek Philippe’s wristwatches, giving model numbers, serial numbers, calibers and dates of manufacturing for each representative piece or unique watch.

Patek Philippe’s first lavishly illustrated volume on pocket watches is the definitive reference work on the company’s production, from the first Patek & Czapek watches of 1839. Some 280 watches are illustrated and described, including pocket watches of elegance and beauty, made for popes, princesses, Balkan kings and, of course, Queen Victoria. The complicated watches made for American magnates, including the legendary Graves watch, are described in detailed captions and color illustrations. There is a charming chapter on the adventures of the firm’s founder, Antoine Norbert de Patek, on a business trip to America in the 1850’s. On the technical side, chapters cover such themes as Jean Adrien Philippe’s stem-winding system, tourbillons, carousels, chronometrical competitions and complications. Written by the authority on Patek Philippe, Alan Banbery, with Patek Philippe’s leading enthusiast, Martin Huber, it yields fresh information and renewed enjoyment at every perusal.

From the time of Queen Victoria’s reign until today, numerous rulers – Popes, monarchs and State leaders – have owned Patek Philippe watches or have offered such prestigious pieces as gifts. Due to the quality of the products, comprising a myriad of technical and aesthetic innovations and the firm’s presence at numerous Universal Exhibitions, the Genevan watch manufacturer, founded in 1839, acquired a reputation of excellence answering to a well-informed clientele. Produced between 1850 and World War I, the watches presented in this catalog have a direct association with the crowned heads or descendants of royal blood of old Europe and more distant regions. These royal timepieces are today the exceptional, sometimes intimate, testimonies of the lives of their owners.