The custom pink gold dial of this reference 3940G features applied Breguet numerals, much loved by collectors. Look closer at the sub-dial at 6 o’ clock and one will notice the initials M-S-O printed in black ink. This indicates that this dial was made upon special request for Michael S. Ovitz, a renowned Patek Philippe collector. Ovitz was a talent agent for Hollywood stars like Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman and would go on to become the former president of the Walt Disney Company. As a privileged customer of the Swiss brand, Ovitz commissioned many Patek Philippe watches with custom dials and many have appeared at the auctions over the years.

Launched in 1985 and discontinued in 2007, the Ref. 3940 has always been a much-loved watch by collectors and is a significant reference in the modern history of Patek Philippe. The 3940’s reputation is further enhanced by the fact that the then head of the company, Philippe Stern, chose to wear the model as his everyday watch.

The Ref. 3940 and its sister reference (the Ref. 3970 perpetual calendar chronograph) were launched in the mid-1980s, at a time when few complicated wristwatches were available and the mechanical watch renaissance wasn’t entirely underway.

The watch was incredibly slim at 9 mm., thanks to the Cal. 240-Q movement with a 22k gold micro-rotor. The design of the dials, in line with many Patek Philippe references, has evolved over the 20 years of production resulting in three clearly defined series and some rare variations. The present example is an example of a late-second series, as evidenced by the cross-hair pattern on the sub-dial at 3 o’ clock.