163 - PHILIPPE, Jean Adrien (1815–1894), French watchmaker and inventor, co-founder of the Patek Philippe watch brand in Switzerland. Signed autograph letter addressed to Joseph Antoine BENASSY. Geneva, August 17, 1875. 2 pp., in-8. Envelope preserved.

PHILIPPE, Jean Adrien (1815–1894), French watchmaker and inventor, co-founder of the Patek Philippe watch brand in Switzerland. Signed autograph letter addressed to Joseph Antoine BENASSY. Geneva, August 17, 1875. 2 pp., in-8. Envelope preserved. A rare letter from the master watchmaker addressed to J.-A. Benassy, his future son-in-law who would go on to become director of Patek Philippe. Philippe mentions the upcoming weddings of his two daughters: Louise Antoinette PHILIPPE (born in 1853), who is to marry his correspondent, the watchmaker Joseph Antoine BENASSY, and the marriage of his third daughter, Renée Justine Alexandrine PHILIPPE (born in 1856), to Charles Arthur William Tufnell Klug. “[…] I have something to tell you that, I hope, will not upset you too much. It concerns a three-week delay in our wedding plans. Here is the reason: Mr. Klug has asked to move his wedding up from the date that had originally been set. We had initially believed that the wedding would not take place before spring, but once the arrangements were finalized—and given that the young couple can see each other every day—we realized that it could not be put off for so long. Louise’s wedding naturally speeds things up, and has led all our acquaintances to remark that they don’t understand why we aren’t holding both ceremonies at the same time on the same day. Indeed, since it is impossible to wait until next spring—given Mr. Klug’s impatience—it would be truly strange and almost ridiculous to hold the weddings of two sisters a month or six weeks apart, when the first would barely have returned from her honeymoon […]. As for holding both weddings on September 22, that’s not feasible because of everything that needs to be prepared, and because of the Klug family. So we’ve thought about postponing it to August 15. I say the 15th without meaning to set that exact date; I mean around the 15th. I spoke to Louise about this minor inconvenience and your plans; she is quite upset about it, though she understands the necessity of making a decision and will resign herself to it, even if she makes a face—but it will pass. Please be so kind as to let me know if you accept our arrangements; even if there is a slight tinge of resentment involved, it will be just like Louise’s: it will pass […].” Louise Antoinette and Joseph Antoine were indeed married two months later, on October 18, 1975. After Jean Adrien Philippe’s death in 1894, Joseph Antoine Benassy took over the management of Patek-Philippe watches. RARE. Enclosed: 5 envelopes addressed to Messrs. Patek, Philippe & Co.