SOTHEBY's Evening Sale of Watches to be held in November

10 Oct '08

5 min read

SOTHEBY'S forthcoming Evening Sale of Watches, to be held in Geneva on Sunday, November 16th, 2008 at 8.00pm, will showcase around 200 timepieces dating from the 17th Century to the present day.

On offer this season, will be fine examples of wristwatches by Patek Philippe, Rolex, Breguet, Audemars Piguet, IWC and Vacheron Constantin as well as outstanding pocket watches with high quality enamel cases.

Alexander Barter, Deputy Worldwide Head of Watches, Sotheby's International, said: “Following Sotheby's May auction, which witnessed the highest results ever achieved by the Company in this category in Geneva, we are thrilled to be offering another exceptional selection of timepieces manufactured by the most desirable watchmakers”.

Geoffroy Ader, Head of Watches, Sotheby's Geneva, added: “Patek Philippe is one of the most desirable brands at auction.

Last May, the “Trossi Leggenda”, an important chronograph wristwatch formerly the property of Count Carlo Felice sold for more than CHF 2 million.

With “The Unique Patek Philippe Ref. 3448” estimated at CHF / $ 1,300,000-2,000,000 and “The Pink Patek Philippe Ref. 2499 First Series” estimated at CHF / $ 1,200,000- 1,800,000, the autumn sale includes, once again, remarkable examples of Patek Philippe's historical production”.

THE UNIQUE PATEK PHILIPPE REF. 3448:
The main highlight of this auction is an important and unique automatic perpetual calendar wristwatch by Patek Philippe with a leap-year subsidiary dial, Ref.3448.

Manufactured between 1962 and 1982, reference 3448 was not only the first automatic perpetual calendar wristwatch made in series by Patek Philippe, but the first by any watch company.

Illustrated in the reference book on Patek Philippe: Wristwatches written by Martin Huber and Alan Banbery, this watch is described as a “unique piece”.

Since standard ref. 3448 wristwatches always include a dial indicating moonphases, the model included in this sale is unique because it does not have the usual aperture for moon-phases but, instead, an auxiliary dial displaying leap-year indications.

THE PINK PATEK PHILIPPE REF. 2499:
Another very rare and exceptional wristwatch signed by Patek Philippe is a pink gold perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch with moon-phases, 1951, Ref. 2499, First Series.

Reference 2499, which was manufactured between 1950 and 1985, is arguably one of the most sought after perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatches ever made by Patek Philippe. When it was launched in 1950, Patek Philippe was still the only watchmaker to manufacture such a complication.

Both design and technical complexity make this watch a true object of desire. The example included in the sale is part of the first and rarest series of the model's production, made in the 1950s.

Immediately distinguishable from all later series with its crisp flat rectangular pushers, a very few examples in pink gold are known to have been made by Patek Philippe. The example to be offered for sale is especially notable for its remarkable state of preservation.

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