An Honest One-Owner Patek Philippe Nautilus That’s Ready for its Second Act

That said, while uncirculated examples of all collectables have gone from relatively commonplace to anomalous hot commodities in their respective markets, they’re not wholly unheard of – just a bit more exciting when they do pop up!

For us, the ultimate appeal of a one-owner watch has more to do with our fascination with the life that watch led on the wrist of a single individual than anything else. In most cases, there’s a good bit of fantasy and forensics involved in figuring out just what kind of life a watch has led. However, every once in a blue moon, we come across a bona fide one-owner watch that’s being offered by the very person it lived out the first half of its life with and we’re granted the luxury of getting the piece’s history straight from the source. That’s an exciting prospect for any watch industry pro regardless of the make or reference in question, but in the case of our most recent one-owner acquisition, it happens to also be a grail watch from one of the most important marques of all time: A 1978 Patek Phillipe Nautilus ref. 3700/001 rendered in steel, which has spent the first half of its life reliably serving British expat and businessman John Peddar, who purchased the watch unworn from a dealer’s display case in Bermuda in 1980. 

The watches that make up Patek’s Nautilus range are undeniable icons of the sports watch world and have ascended to become unexpected late-blooming hits for the marque. The Nautilus watches are considered by both watch collectors and industrial design insiders to be one of the most important and perpetually relevant designs to come from the impossibly fertile mind of the legendary Gerald Genta. The first Nautilus references also set a new standard for a steel sports watch from a luxury marque – something that was still considered radical in the late ‘70s. These watches are works of art that strike a wrist presence that’s at once imposing and delicate, and there should be little question as to why they command the unprecedented interest from collectors that they have in recent years. However, while these watches are now one of the hottest buys in the horology world, they weren’t a huge hit in-period.

Peddar’s work required him to travel abroad consistently throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s, and this steel Nautilus was his only wristwatch for the lion’s share of the years that he owned it. It was a trusted companion in his travels, a statement piece that he chose to set himself apart from the Rolex crowd (a bold decision in 1980), and a versatile daily-worn watch that has been loved and worn with pride its entire life. Moreover, Peddar kept everything the watch originally came with, meaning this already rare example of Patek Philippe history retains a full set including both inner and outer boxes, papers, and even the original salesman’s business card! It’s a watch that has traveled around the world and back on Peddar’s wrist, but displays only gentle, honest wear.

When confronted with the unexpected opportunity to speak with a rare offering’s original owner, we asked Peddar to tell us in his own words how he initially came to own his long-loved steel Nautilus. The British expat explained: 

“I worked for a US company in their international division and they had me based in Bermuda for almost 5 years. I would walk past this jewelry store every day on my way to work on Front Street in Downtown Hamilton, and the Nautilus just drew my eye! I remember thinking it was just a really cool looking watch and I went in knowing very little about watches. Living in Bermuda, I was involved in a lot of watersports and I wanted a waterproof watch that I could use at the beach or snorkeling or while fishing. I was about to leave the island in February of 1980 and I went in and I said ‘Look, I’ve had my eye on this one and you’ve had it in your window for a while. What’s the deal?’ At the time, it was either a Patek or a Rolex and the salesman convinced me that Patek was the way to go because everybody had a Rolex. So while a Submariner was great for the activities I loved, I really liked the look of the Patek. To me, it was certainly expensive back then and the salesman told me it was the world’s most expensive stainless steel watch at that time. But he also explained how they were handmade and that every little screw was handmade and hand polished and explained the gold counterbalance that wound the watch to me, and it seemed like something really special and unique, so I decided to buy it.”

For Peddar, collector’s foresight never entered the picture – he simply wanted “one good watch.” However, the man’s keen eye for design served him well and as his beloved steel Nautilus prepares to embark on its next journey with a new custodian, Peddar can’t help but ruminate on Genta’s handiwork, telling us that he believes the Patek’s design is “ageless and the fact that Patek Philippe is still making essentially the same design with a few added features proves that. The basic watch is still being made in the original format and that to me says a lot.”  

Considering the human element of owning and wearing a watch for that long, the number of important memories John Peddar’s Patek Philippe bore witness to over its 30 years of daily wear is considerable to say the least. However, the things that stand out most to its former owner are simply how well-traveled the watch is and how its striking design always grabbed attention. Peddar tells C + T:

“Being in international business development for big companies brought me to 135 different countries. I traveled the world wearing the watch – from Bolivia to Botswana, Mongolia to Azerbaijan, that Patek was my only watch. Everywhere I went, people always pointed out what  a cool watch it was – but especially in Saudi Arabia! Most of the people I interacted with in business wore Rolexes and a lot of them really noticed the Patek; it was never like I rolled up my sleeve and said ‘Hey! Look at my watch!’ But it certainly captured a lot of eyes. I’m not a pretentious guy, but the people I did business with were often very wealthy and they’d remark on the watch and it gave me some sense of status and a special feeling beyond the money. I never lost it, I never mistreated it, and the big thing is just how comfortable a watch it is to wear. It has traveled around the world with me more times than I can count, it’s probably been set to more timezones more frequently than any other Nautilus in the world, but it was always reliable.”

For us (and hopefully for the watch’s next owner), John Peddar’s globe-trotting Nautilus represents more than just a pinnacle of watch design and an icon of horology; it represents a watch that was used and enjoyed the way it was originally intended – not left to spin away its years in a winder or sequestered away in a safe as an investment. This is a watch that existed in the real world before the tidal wave of hype delivered these remarkable pieces into the stratosphere, and if you ask us, knowing that this Nautilus’ gentle patina was earned via an honest life traveling the world on John Peddar’s wrist makes it a much more soulful example than the pristine sock drawer barn find. And it just goes to show, one-owner pieces still exist!