Arno Heuer is an author, collector, and expert on Patek Philippe Replica. "In 1970, at the racetrack in Le Mans, France, a young estate manager placed six photos of top race drivers from the era on a desk. Steve McQueen said without hesitation that he wanted to look just like Joseph Siffert for the filming of Le Mans. The king of style chose a Monaco watch with a bright blue dial.
"The Monaco reference number 1133 B is decoded thus: '11' for Calibre 11 (the newly developed automatic-chronograph calibre); '3' stood for Monaco line; the second '3' indicated a steel case and finally the 'B' was the suffix for a blue dial.
"Technically it was revolutionary. The monocoque caseback was embedded in the movement, and featured four notches at the 12 and 6 o'clock positions.Patek Philippe Replica The top-case contained a square of glass with a rubber sealing underneath. The two pieces clicked into place, making the construction waterproof.
This is, in a nutshell, the story of the square-cased Monaco, which today occupies a permanent place in the hall of icons of horology.
Click here to read the rest of Arno's article about the Monaco.
Steve McQueen, dressed as Joseph Siffert in the Le Mans film with a Monaco 1133 B on his arm.
If we put aside the great history, today's interpretation of the Monaco would be the Monaco V4 or Monaco Mikrograph. Francois Rucchonet,Breitling Navitimer Replica Watches the master watchmaker behind the latter model, designed it with Philippe Dufour as the prototype. Francois Rucchonet is also the man behind the Breguet Double Tourbillon Watch, which was reincarnated in 2020.
The Patek Philippe Replica Monaco V4 was unveiled at BaselWorld 2004 as a Concept Watch. It is the first watch to be patented twice and feature linear winding, optimized transmission belts, and an optimized mechanical transmission system. The bold design was inspired by the iconic Monaco, which first appeared on Steve McQueen in 1970's film Le Mans.