Results for Sotheby's (Auctions)

In Conversation with Davide Parmegiani on Monaco Legends’ 88 Cartier Auction

Wei Koh speaks to Davide and Andrea Parmegiani higlighting some Cartiers on auction from the astonishing 88 Cartier auction.

Highlights: Sothebys’ Hong Kong Watch Auction

Taking place on Friday, April 23, 2021, Sotheby’s first live watch auction of the year takes place in Hong Kong. Important Watches is a full-sized sale led by the unique Rolex “Zenith” Daytona in platinum with a turquoise “Stella” dial, which might just set the record for most valuable automatic Daytona ever sold at auction. But the 296-lot sale is diverse in the traditional manner of Hong Kong auctions, encompassing vintage Patek Philippe, modern grand complications, and an assortment of independent watchmaking. Here’s a roundup of a few noteworthy lots at the auction, including a Patek Philippe ref. 1518 in exceptional condition, a pair of gorgeous pocket watches decorated with the very best of Geneva miniature enamelling, and the F.P Journe Coffret 38 made up of five watches with steel cases. The auction will start at 11 am local time on April 23 at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, while the catalogue and online bidding are available on Sothebys.com. Lot 2185 – Vacheron Constantin miniature enamel pocket watch The middle decades of the 20th century were a golden age for miniature enamelling in Geneva, with the cities best watchmakers recruiting its best enamellers to decorate pocket watches. One example of such work is lot 2185, a yellow gold pocket watch made in 1948 by Vacheron Constantin that bears a miniature enamel painting by Hélène May Mercier (1910-1996), an artisan who learnt the craft with another famed enameller, Carlo Poluzzi...

Urwerk Launches 48-Hour Auction (This Weekend) Of First Gold UR-100, ‘Fight C19,’ To Support The Fight Against COVID-19

To aid the fight against COVID-19, Urwerk will auction “Fight C19,” the first production piece of the UR-100 Gold Edition with a special engraving, "FIGHT C19," instead of the regular limited edition plate displaying the limited edition number up to 25.

Four highlight watches from the Rolex “Daytona Ultimatum” Auction, with live pics of the lots

Here are the highlights from the recently concluded Rolex "Daytona Ultimatum" auction, by Phillips in collaboration with Bacs & Russo. Find out how the 32 Rolex Daytona fared in this highly-anticipated auction.

Phillips’ Rolex Bao Dai Breaks Auction Records Again: CHF5,066,000

Phillips breaks Rolex auction records again with the ref. 6062 “Bao Dai” at their Spring 2017 Geneva auction session one.

5 To Watch At Phillips Hong Kong Rolex Auction (Live Pics)

Results from the Artcurial “Panerai Only” Auction

"Panerai Only" Artcurial Auction results

Auctions: Phillips Bringing Three Mega Pateks to Its Spring Sales

We'll have further auction coverage in the coming weeks, but it's worth giving Phillips a bit more attention, as it continues to lead in year-over-year sales. The auction house sold a record total of over $290 million in watches last year and has had five years in a row with over $200 million in sales. The market has shifted (I'd argue at least twice) in the past few years, but despite the growing F.P. Journe, independent, and pocket watch (yes, pocket watch) markets, the top lots for Phillips continue to be Patek Philippe. At each of their spring auctions, Phillips is selling an important Patek to headline the sale, and each is the kind of watch that could be the pinnacle of the world's top collections. Normal caveat here: I haven't seen these watches in person yet, and anyone considering bidding should make sure to check any watch in person if at all possible. A Patek Philippe ref. 2523 Two-Crown World Time With Cloissoné Enamel South America Dial First, we have the star of Geneva, to be sold on May 9: the Patek Philippe ref. 2523 two-crown world time with cloisonné enamel map of South America, from 1953. Aside from rare variants of 2499s or 1518s (and a few repeaters), these two-crown watches, with their incredible, angular lugs and giant open canvas at the center of the dial, have become the holiest of Holy Grails for many collectors. They are rare enough to be hunted and coveted, but there are also enough out there to be studied, understood, and codified. Too rare o...

Auctions: Steel Patek Philippe 1518 Sells For $17.6 Million, Highest Ever For A Vintage Patek Wristwatch

A rare steel example of the world's first serially produced perpetual calendar chronograph sets a new benchmark in Geneva.

Breaking News: Sotheby's Sale of the Audemars Piguet 'Grosse Pièce' Shatters Records, Becomes By Far Most Expensive Audemars Piguet At $7,736,000

The watch sold for $5+ million more than the next-highest non-charity AP ever sold.

Auctions: This Weekend In Bienne: 'The Charity Watch Sale' Raises Funds For Children In Need

What started as a small community project is now a growing fundraiser for Switzerland's leading children's NGO.

Headlines and Takeaways from Geneva Fall Auctions

Report: Geneva Fall Auctions 2025

The just-concluded Geneva auction season was mostly a plateau with several striking peaks and a few lows. The peaks were marked by desirable timepieces that outperformed by far, yet shared little in common with one another in terms of style or period. The peaks ranged from multiple F.P. Journe watches to a diamond-set Patek Philippe ref. 3424/1 “Gilbert Albert” to the Breguet four-minute tourbillon pocket watch from 1809 to the Instagram-ready Patek Philippe ref. 3970 in “salmon” with Breguet numerals. Despite such diverse taste, the small pool of bidders seemed to have one thing in common: they were all focused on a “trophy” watch. The Christie’s saleroom in the Four Seasons. Image – Christie’s With few exceptions, contemporary watches from mainstream brands were cold, while vintage watches were mostly lukewarm – but as always there were exceptions. An Patek Philippe ref. 570 with a black dial signed “E. Gubelin” sold for an impressive CHF419,100 including fees, or US$523,000, at Christie’s, while Phillips sold a Rolex Daytona ref. 6263 “RCO” (or “Oyster Sotto”) for an equally impressive CHF1.39 million, or US$1.73 million – close to the historical peak for the model. A vintage watch that surprised on the downside was the 1927 Rolex Oyster worn by Mercedes Gleitze when she became the first woman to swim the English Channel in 1927 – a landmark in Rolex lore. Though it sold for CHF1.39 million, or US$1.74 million, there was just one bi...

Patek Philippe Star Caliber 2000 Under the Hammer at Sotheby’s Abu Dhabi

The Patek Philippe Star Caliber 2000 stands as one of the most technically ambitious pocket watches of the modern era. Launched to mark the turn of the millennium, it was the fourth most complicated watch in the world at its debut, but its true significance lies not in numbers, but in the ingenuity of its mechanisms, which redefined how grand complications could be conceived, engineered, and executed. An original complete set of four Star Caliber 2000 watches is being offered for sale by Sotheby’s at its first-ever watch auction in Abu Dhabi, which takes place in December. The first complete set to ever appear publicly, the sale will likely draw significant attention from collectors and institutions alike. The technical significance of the Star Caliber 2000 The Star Caliber 2000 was and is a remarkable achievement in watchmaking, but it was never the world’s most complicated watch. When it debuted, the Star Caliber 2000 ranked fourth in the official tally of complications, behind the Patek Philippe’s own Caliber 89 and the famous Henry Graves Super Complication from 1932, as well as the lesser-known Leroy 01 from 1904. Over the past quarter century, the Star Caliber 2000 has fallen down the rankings as more complicated watches, for both the pocket and the wrist, have been developed by Vacheron Constantin and Audemars Piguet. But the Star Caliber 2000 should not be judged solely by this kind of ranking, which is largely superficial. The watch is packed with a number o...

Auctions: Previewing Phillips’ Massive ‘Decade One’ Auction and Reflecting on Ten Years of Phillips with Bacs and Russo

The auction blends reflection with foresight on the next ten years. It will also likely set the record for the largest total sale price in the history of watches.

Auctions: A Live Preview Of This Weekend's Fall 2025 Monaco Legend Auction

We're back in Monaco for the start of the fall auction season, and there are so many special watches to see.

Auctions: Mercedes Gleitze’s 1927 Rolex Oyster Comes Up For Auction For The First Time In 25 Years

Worn by the British swimmer in 1927, this historic watch is a symbol of endurance and one of the most important pieces in the history of Rolex.

Auctions: Exclusive: The Pinnacle Of Holy Grails, A Patek 1518 In Steel Is Coming To Auction In November

Phillips to auction the same steel 1518 it sold for a record in 2016, complete with an estimate of CHF 8 to 16 million.

Auctions: Pharrell Williams' JOOPITER Hosts Its First Dedicated Watch Auction - The Art Of Time

Highlighted by custom-order Cartier and possibly unique vintage pieces, JOOPITER's curated watch sale has a clear point of view.

Sotheby’s Once Auctioned Johnny Cash’s Rolex Watch For Just $7,200

One of the most influential American musicians of the 20th century, Johnny Cash used his fame to speak out against inequality, racism and prejudice. A life-long Rolex man, and the embodiment of cool, Cash sold more that 90 million albums in a career spanning five decades.

SJX Podcast: Urban Jürgensen’s Revival, Breguet’s Birthday, and Spring Auctions

SJX and Brandon Moore kick off episode seven of the SJX Podcast with the relaunch of Urban Jürgensen (which includes a tribute to Derek Pratt’s Oval pocket watch), discussing why this time might be different. Also on the docket is a recap of the spring auction season, which included strong prices for hot names in independent watchmaking, though other “indies” waned, surprising showings from hitherto esoteric clocks and pocket watches, and some value buys with out-of-vogue timepieces. Lastly, we recap Breguet’s 250th anniversary launches so far, which have met with a mixed reception, but demonstrate signs of life for a historic brand. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.  

Auctions: Six Takeaways From A Full Spring And Summer Season Of Watch Sales In Geneva, Hong Kong, And New York

Don't call them trends; here are a half dozen things I learned by paying close attention to the public watch market as of late.

Bring a Loupe: The 2025 New York Summer Auctions And A Bonus eBay Pick

All that and more in this week's edition of Hodinkee's What's Selling Where column.

Auctions: F.P. Journe Reveals Why He Paid More Than $6 Million For A Breguet Clock He Designed – To Showcase In His Upcoming Museum

Watchmaker bested rivals to buy the Breguet Pendule Sympathique No. 1 and says it will be a key part of a new museum dedicated to his work and its place in horology history.

Report: Geneva Spring Auctions 2025

Despite everything, including tariffs and a strong Swiss franc, the Geneva auction season turned out to be a strong one, with some of the strongest results being in the most surprising segments. The bigger winner this season was Phillips, which sold a bit under 200 lots for CHF43.4 million including fees, while also claiming the most valuable lots for the season, reflecting Phillips’ strong leadership and team. Despite being the market leader by some margin, the Phillips catalogue was arguably the riskiest as it included several high-value pocket watches and clocks – timepieces that not part of mainstream collecting today. Yet the gamble paid off with the most valuable timepiece this season being its Breguet Sympathique no. 1 that sold for CHF5.51 million. Christie’s achieved CHF21.2 million with a similar number of lots that were arguably more conventional in taste and format than at Phillips. One of its most valuable lots was a Cartier Crash “NSO” with a special order dial that sold for CHF736,000 – one of the biggest surprises of the season but proof that being eye-catching enough for social media is a big factor in desirability and value today. Interestingly, the Crash sold for exactly the same as the Richard Mille RM UP-01 Ferrari. The Crash went for about 15 times the original retail, while the RM UP-01 was about half of retail. The Crash NSO “nickele” grey. Image – Christie’s Over at Antiquorum, the tally was CHF10 million – from almost 800 lot...

Bring a Loupe: The 2025 Geneva Spring Auctions And A Few eBay Gems

All that and more in this week's edition of Hodinkee's What's Selling Where column.

SJX Podcast: Geneva Auctions and Breguet

In the fifth episode of the SJX Podcast, Brandon Moore and SJX discuss Breguet’s reinterpretation of the Souscription for its 250th anniversary, as well as a historical Breguet watches coming up for auction, including a pocket watch owned by Napoleon’s sister and the very first modern-day Breguet Sympathique. We also talk about Christopher Ward’s daring new C12 with a dial-side balance wheel and very contemporary styling, before moving on to antique watches and clocks coming up for auction at Phillips in Geneva, including a 1920s portico mystery clock by Cartier in the “orientalist” style. Lastly, we finish some complicated pocket watches, which are perhaps under appreciated but magnificent examples of horology. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.  

Auctions: Three Seriously Collectable Watches Are Coming To Auction For The First Time [Rolex Daytona 'Le Mans', Simon Brette Chronomètre Artisans, And A Konstantin Chaykin ThinKing]

A duo of upcoming sales sets the stage for a trio of decidedly modern, in-demand models that collectors will be sure to follow.

Auctions: A.-L. Breguet to F.P. Journe at Christie’s Geneva

Rare Watches in Geneva kicks off the spring auction season for Christie’s. Some of the highlights amongst the sale’s 183 lots illustrates the history and evolution of horology, most notably with timepieces by Abraham-Louis Breguet and Francois-Paul Journe. The notable F.P. Journe offerings include a Resonance pre-souscription and a Ruthenium full house, complete with numbered box. The standouts from Breguet include a pocket watch first owned by Pauline Bonaparte, Napoleon’s younger sister, an early striking carriage clock, and an intriguing Type XX precursor literally gone askew. F.P Journe Principally inspired by the work of A.-L. Breguet and Antide Janvier, Francois-Paul Journe’s landmark Chronomètre à Résonance was the first attempt at synchronised, coupled oscillators in a wristwatch. The first numbered 20 examples were reserved for a Breguet-style souscription series – paid in advance by the client – but were not the first made. Image – Christie’s A handful of pre-production watches were made for Basel 1999, followed by the pre-souscription series to which this watch belongs. About 20 watches starting from “21” onwards are pre-souscription, and this is “041/00R”. Notably, one example prior, “040/00R”, sold for a little under CHF1.4 million including fees at Christie’s in 2023, setting a record. Image – Christie’s  The Ruthenium collection, built in 99 examples each across five models from 2001 to 2005, includes the Octa Calendrie...

Auctions: The Military And CIA-Provenance Highlights Of The Monaco Legend Group Spring Auction

From MK Ultra to the Chilean Marines, if you like watches with fascinating, one-of-a-kind provenance, this season's catalog is not to be missed.