Patek Philippe Nautilus 3800/3P

Its easy to distinguish this special 3800/3 from a regular Nautilus because of the factory-set diamond bezel and dial, but if you pick it up you’ll notice the metal used is far from ordinary too.

Patek Philippe introduced the ref. 3800 as the midsize brother of the original 3700 Nautilus, clocking in at a diameter of 37.5 mm. The 3800 wasn’t just a shrunken Nautilus, but introduced some important improvements vis-à-vis its big brother. For instance, the 3800 was the first Nautilus to feature an in-house automatic movement: the caliber 335 SC. Unlike the ‘Jumbo’ Nautilus, the 3800 also came with a central seconds hand (as indicated by the “SC”, which stands for seconde centrale). While this might seem like a minute (pun intended) detail, the sweeping seconds adds loads of dynamism to the original Nautilus’ rather static dial.

In addition to that, the 3800 line offers far more variety and playfulness and in all fairness; for a more reasonable price. The exceptionally rare Nautilus executions with factory diamond settings are among the most mouth-watering pieces in their sports-watch history. The "/3" has a 40 brilliant suit diamonds in its bezel. In the case of this 90's example we have to offer: another 11 diamonds can be found on the dial. Other than this sparkling addition, it comes off as a "regular" 3800 with its blue tapestry dial and white metal case plus bracelet.

Nothing is farther from the truth! This execution isn't ordinary at all because of the use of platinum. Very few examples ever surfaced in this noblest of metals and only less are still preserved this well. The heavy case is razor-sharp and the bracelet is virtually stretch free. The original owner took great care of it as he has only worn it sparsely. Perhaps because he owns quite some more impressive pieces that we hope to acquire too one day. But for now we are very proud to have this magnificent Nautilus 3800/3P with box and papers.