GLau[Patek Moderator]
12052
Hi 👋 all, As requested by Dr Tabby, WPS’s self proclaimed enamel addict/slave researched and created this post on the whole Chinese zodiac rare handcrafts limited editions.
Jul 03, 2022,16:23 PM
Thanks for the good folks at Patek (J and M) for providing me with official photos. On my own, I could not have found all the lovely pieces. Tried as I may, I could not find the year of the Pig with a dial which is cute and lovely !
This LE series lasted a complete cycle of 12 years which started in 2002 (year of the horse) and ended in 2013 (year of the snake). Nine zodiacs were made in enamel dials and three zodiacs were made in wood marquetry dials. Apparently the idea came from an AD in SE Asia to cater to the Asian collectors.
For the enamel ones, a set contained 4 pieces with each piece in a different color. Although it remains a secret in terms of number of pieces made, my collector friends said that their best estimate is that less than 10 sets were made for each zodiac (i.e. less than 40 pieces). For the marquetry dials, I received 8 motifs for the Tiger and Rabbit, but only 4 for the snake. Certainly demand outstripped supply for all these pieces.
An important piece of information: these enamel pieces were made by none other than THE Anita Porchet (with her team), world’s most renowned horological enameler ! If any of you want to have an enamel dial made by her, the Chinese zodiac series is a possibility as these pieces do come out in auctions. A set for the year of the rooster was recently auctioned off one by one by Phillips in Hong Kong back in May.
Now, the MOST critical piece of information: Ms. Porchet made the first zodiac, year of the Horse by herself without her team. According to SJX in his blog, the dial was inspired by an enamel bowl made during the Qing Dynasty in the 19th century, and only three sets of four pieces were made. If you fancy a Patek enamel dial made by THE Anita Porchet on her own, you can get one or more of the 12 pieces being 5075G-023 to 026 !
19th century Qing dynasty bowl that inspired Anita for year of the horse 🐴
After 8 years (2002 to 2009) of enamel dials, 2010 year of the tiger and 2011 year of the rabbit marquetry dials were produced. The enamel motif of “cute” animals transitioned to realistic portray of the tiger and rabbit. Thereafter, enamel returned with a cute/comical dragon motif. In 2013, the last year of the series, marquetry dials depicting realistic snakes were back.
Each piece is handmade and is truly unique ! The marquetry dials are amazing and so realistic, but naturally I have a biased preference for the enamel dials. Within the enamel dials and in terms of rarity, my top pick is the horse dials because they were the only ones made Anita herself. In terms of intricacy, my top pick is the rooster due to the additional work within the body.
What are your thoughts on these pieces ? Which one(s) do you prefer and why ?
If you want a certain reference number, please let me know.
Here is a link to individual photos for enamel pieces
Here is a link to individual photos for marquetry dials
This message has been edited by cazalea on 2022-07-25 13:55:07