Patek Philippe Nautilus watches

Patek Philippe introduced the Nautilus in 1976, a steel sports watch designed by Gérald Genta, who had earlier drawn the Royal Oak for Audemars Piguet. The case takes its shape from a ship's porthole, with a rounded octagonal bezel, and the dial is horizontally embossed. The first model, the Ref. 3700, is a 40 mm steel watch just 7.6 mm thick; the steel 3800 is a smaller 37.5 mm version. A ladies' Nautilus followed in 1980.

Patek marked the collection's 30th anniversary in 2006 with the 5711 and the 5712. The 5711 is the time-and-date Nautilus, 40 mm and 8.3 mm thick, in steel, gold or platinum, with baguette-set bezels on some versions. When Thierry Stern announced the end of the steel 5711, Patek closed it with an olive green 5711/1A-014, then the 5711/1A-018, whose Tiffany Blue dial marks 170 years of Patek's partnership with Tiffany & Co. in a run of 170. The 5712 keeps the 40 mm case but runs on the self-winding micro-rotor calibre 240 PS IRM C LU, which adds power reserve, moon phases and small seconds to the date.

The calendars and travel watches move up a size. The 5726 annual calendar is 40.5 mm and 11.3 mm thick and runs on the self-winding calibre 26-330 S QA LU 24H; the 5980 and the 5990 Travel Time share the 40.5 mm case size. The 5740 of 2018, the first perpetual calendar in the Nautilus line, stays at 40 mm and 8.42 mm thick, with the self-winding micro-rotor calibre 240 Q.

The ladies' models are smaller: the 32 mm 7010 and the 33.6 mm 7014, 7018 and 7021, all with set bezels, and the 35.2 mm 7118, which runs on the self-winding calibre 26-330 S C and comes with a diamond bezel in rose gold. Outliers include the 3710 with a power reserve display, the white gold 5976/1G made for the 40th anniversary in 1,300 pieces, the platinum 5711/1P 40th Anniversary in 700, and the unique titanium 5712T made for Only Watch 2007.