This is the second year in a row that I’ve had the opportunity to attend the November watch auctions in Geneva. On last year’s trip, a good friend and I had the pleasure of participating in several events organized by Patek Philippe as well as the biennial OnlyWatch auction. This year, we returned for the previews and salesroom action at major houses including Phillips, Christie’s, and Sotheby’s.
Patek Philippe watches in stainless steel are the hot thing among vintage collectibles. Phillips’s auction house, whose watch division is spearheaded by Bacs & Russo, has set four world records for stainless steel Patek Philippe watches over the last two years. A new find coming up in the Geneva Watch Auction: FOUR could possibly break the current record of almost $4 million. Check out that Patek Philippe Reference 1518 right here.
London-based watch and jewelry auctioneer Watches of Knightsbridge, a family business with more than 50 years of experience in trading, hosted its summer auction on July 2, 2016. It included more than 500 lots from major players such as Patek Philippe, Rolex, Omega, Heuer, and Breitling and there were some very affordable estimates on offer. Check out 12 of my favorite wristshots from the auction.
So now that the dust has settled on the recent Phillips Start-Stop-Reset auction of stainless steel chronographs in Geneva, a sale that saw 100 percent of its 88 lots sold, I’d like to focus on a watch that I thought stood out from the very strong field.
Pelé, now 70, is considered the greatest soccer player to ever have lived. With the European Cup 2016 just weeks from its start at this time, what better time is there for Julien’s to stage this auction? And, truly, some soccer fans are going to make very lucky finds here.
Watches from the upcoming Phillips Start-Stop-Reset auction of 88 stainless steel chronographs made a stop in the auction house’s London Mayfair location for several days, which gave me the opportunity to view them in the metal and even try some on. The auction, due to take place at La Reserve in Geneva on May 14, 2016, is sure to be a spectacular event not only for the picturesque location, but for the amazing timepieces for sale.
Two of Elvis Presley’s watches are being offered in the upcoming auction “Music Icons 2016,” held by Julien’s and taking place on May 21, 2016 at the Hard Rock Café in New York City. Both the Mathey-Tissot day-date and Waltham pocket watch are in good shape and offer interesting backstories.
Phillips’ next thematic sale of wristwatches, which is scheduled to take place on May 14, 2016 in Geneva, is called Start-Stop-Reset. It is an unusual sale in that it only includes chronographs, and even more unusually, the auction exclusively comprises stainless steel chronographs
Conditions of sale, Antiquorum Hong Kong, June 2015: “Antiquorum confirms no ability or obligation to perform due diligence on any lot.” Imagine one of the worst things that could happen to you as a watch collector: your home is invaded by robbers and your entire collection is spirited away. Amazingly, Antiquorum listed and sold just such a watch involved in a collector’s worst nightmare. What now?
Richard Mille, for all of its incredibly creative 15 years, is still quite a young brand, so it’s really no surprise that not too many of the brand’s watches appear at auction. However, you might be surprised how high a price the few that do come up for auction actually hammer for. Here is an overview of the top 10 performers at auctions in 2015.