Milan's CityOval has turned into the centre of the watch world. Patek Philippe opened its seventh Watch Art Grand Exhibition there on Friday, and used the occasion to roll out a batch of new timepieces that will keep collectors talking well into 2026.
The headline release is the Ref. 5978P-010, a perpetual calendar chronograph that the brand frames as the heir to a lineage starting with the 1941 Ref. 1518, the world's first serially produced perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch. Limited to 120 pieces in a 42 mm platinum case, it packs 500 components and two instantaneous complications — a jumping perpetual calendar and a vertical clutch chronograph with an instantaneous 30-minute counter. The price is €320,757 (roughly $359,000). President Thierry Stern highlighted the midnight moment when every aperture flips within milliseconds. The dial layout is unusually readable too, with day, date and month arranged in an arc across the top.
Italy gets its own tribute: seven limited editions engraved "Patek Philippe Milano 2026." Three Calatravas nod to the national flag — a red-dialled minute repeater (Ref. 7047G-010), a green perpetual calendar (Ref. 7147G-010) and a white-dialled date model (Ref. 7007G-010). Add an Aquanaut Ref. 5167 with a blue sunburst and black gradient dial, plus two World Time Minute Repeaters with cloisonné enamel dials painting central Milan by day and by night.
The splashiest debut came at an evening cocktail, where the Gondolo Ladies First collection appeared — six quartz, cushion-shaped watches, shown by models in evening gowns beside ballerinas performing around a sculpture of Geneva's Jet d'Eau built from over 2,000 crystals. Stern also used the stage to underline the family's independence from luxury conglomerates, introducing his 25-year-old son Adrien as the next generation.
Why should a traveller care? Even if you're not shopping at the €300,000 tier, the Watch Art Grand Exhibition is a free-ish window into high watchmaking — past editions have drawn huge crowds and included craft workshops and brand archives. Milan makes an easy long weekend of it: pair the exhibition with the nearby Duomo, Brera's galleries and an aperitivo. Just check opening requirements and book ahead; these exhibitions run for a limited window and timed entry is standard.
