ABOUT THE PROJECT

The PPPP (Patek Philippe Public Project) website is a wiki based on mass wisdom, run privately by Tal Ben-Shlomo, an Israeli watchmaker specializing in the restoration of vintage and antique watches and owner of empressissi™ vintage watches. We welcome your thoughts, insights and questions and above all – contributions to this project.

Legal Information

IMPORTANT Please read carefully: To avoid any suggestion of misrepresentation (also known as 'passing off' tort), we would like to make it strictly clear that this website, its owners and the services herein provided free of charge to collectors are not associated in any way or under any circumstances with the Patek Philippe® Brand which is a registered trademark of Patek Philippe SA in Switzerland and worldwide. The website does not collect nor publish information on behalf of Patek Philippe SA. By the same token, Patek Philippe SA does not endorse the use of this website. All information provided in this website is strictly attainable because of the goodwill of timepiece owners and their desire to share such information publicly. The information in this website is based on contributions made by alleged owners of Patek Philippe® watches. Unless clearly mentioned, none of the information is confirmed, nor provided, nor verified by Patek Philippe SA.


The records of Patek Philippe® watches present in this website do not serve as, nor claim to be, an Extract from the Archives of Patek Philippe® nor any form of certificate thereof. The Extract from the Archives is a paid service provided solely by Patek Philippe SA, produced after meticulous examination of their production records, verifying matching records, and accompanied by an official printed certificate. That certificate is the only official document available to determine accurate factory records of a Patek Philippe timepiece. As earlier mentioned, we do not offer this service, nor are we in any way associated with obtaining it nor the process of doing so.
Should you wish to receive an official Extract from the Archives for your watch, please contact Patek Philippe directly here.
Any misuse of information found in and gleaned from this website in order to present it in any way as the official record or as being with the approval of Patek Philippe SA, shall be considered misleading and unlawful.

Level of Verification

In order to maintain a reliable database, the information provided concerning each individual timepiece in this website is first examined by an administrator who determines the level of verification of the submitted material.

Level 1 – Admin approved (Basic)
The minimal requirements for submission will include three photographic images; The frontal face of the watch, the inner back of the watch that clearly shows the case serial number and a picture of the mechanics, including a clear vision of the movement's serial number. The administrator will complete any missing data which has been left blank during the submission process and found in the information visible in the photos (for example, the type of dial, caliber number etc.) This type of submission will be regarded as 'basic'; in other words the information, both photographic and written, is provided by the owner, verified as matching by the Admin, but is not backed with a document.

Level 2 – Records Approved (Advanced)
If a contributor submits an official Extract from the Archives and/or a certificate of origin from Patek Philippe® and all the relevant information matches the images, the entry will be verified as a higher-level contribution which means the information presented does not only match the images provided but also matches official Patek Philippe factory records.

Limited Information
This project also collects and exhibits Patek Philippe movements that are stand-alone (without an original case) or with other components of the watch that are not factory original/signed, for example: an aftermarket case/bracelet.


Info IconWhat is the difference between Basic approval and Records approval?

Basic approval simply means that all the information submitted matches the images provided. Any missing information will either be left blank or completed manually by an administrator during the verification process, in accordance with their experience and knowledge. For example: verification of a caliber number, number of jewels or metal composition visible from the photos, should the owner not know them. This information does not necessarily mean that there are no 'marriage' components. For example, it is still possible that the watch movement and its case did not leave the factory together, or that the dial was replaced to a different type at a certain point, or any combination of the above.

Records approval on the other hand, is a higher rank of verification, only available when an Extract from the Archives and/or a certificate of origin is submitted. To achieve this rank, not only must the data submitted match the photos provided, but also it must be verified according to an official Patek Philippe records verification process, backed by an Extract from the Archives /origin certificate, meaning that all components which have left the factory are as described.

Data protection of Extract from the Archives/Certificate of Origin

The contributor to this project will have the choice to make the certificate public during the submission process or to hide it from the public. Either way, the only way to approve a higher ranking for a submission is for the contributor to upload the certificate for verification by an Admin. Even if the records are not visible to the public, they will remain in the database in order to maintain the rank and a contributor can choose to present them for public view at a later point in his user dashboard, or to cancel the option.