Her Majesty was not the only famous person to choose Patek Philippe. The company's­ pocket watches and early wristwatches were acquired by many European royals, Russian czars, and various popes, and were later prized by show-business stars, including the late Duke Ellington and guitarist Eric Clapton, who recently auctioned part of his collection of Patek Philippe chronographs. Russian author Leo Tolstoy and Nobel Prize winner Marie Curie also wore Patek. Some of these watches­ can be found in Geneva's Patek Philippe Museum, which houses hundreds of historic watches by Patek and other companies.

It is a point of pride for the company that its craftsmen will stand behind and repair any Patek Philippe watches, even those that date back to 1839. Many well-known watch companies will not repair or renovate movements that are 25 or 50 years old, but Patek's experts are willing to work on any watch made by their predecessors, although this can be an extremely expensive process if special parts must be made.

LIKE PAUL BUCLIN, Philippe Stern speaks of Patek Philippe watches in human terms. He says that one of his key goals has been to teach his son Thierry how to recognize "the DNA" of a Patek Philippe watch, the workmanship that sets it apart from other high-quality timepieces. To do so, however, Stern felt it was necessary to step back and give Thierry some breathing space. Instead of personally teaching him all about the business, he recruited a lifelong friend to supervise and instruct him. This decision had nothing to do with the specifics of watchmaking and everything to do with the complex dynamics of the father-son ­relationship.