The October auctions showed how much collectors have missed interesting watches over the long summer.

What's in a Name?

The RR Auction Space sale in Boston on October 24 showed us just how important the name of a watch's previous owner can be, especially on the American market. The Rolex GMT-Master "Pepsi" Ref. 1675, serial no. 2448767, which has been to space on the cuff of a space suit worn by Lunar Module Pilot Edgar Mitchell on the Apollo 14 in 1971, sold for USD 2,163,199.

The watch's caseback was engraved "Worn by Cdr. E. Mitchell on Apollo 14, 1971, To Karlin—My Daughter." This GMT-Master was the second space-flown and moon-flown Rolex to be offered for auction. The first example belonged to the astronaut Ron Evans, who was the command module pilot aboard the Apollo 17.

But his watch was met with little fanfare in 2009, and it sold for a meager sum of USD 131,450. The Space auction was also meant to offer an 18K gold Omega Speedmaster Professional Apollo 11 1969 "Tribute to Astronauts" commemorative watch (Ref. BA 145.022).

This was the watch that the organizers had expected to be the star lot. In October 2022, the same chronograph previously owned by Wally Schirra sold for an eye-watering USD 1,906,954. But NASA appears to have suddenly stepped in.

All Omega Speedmaster Professional watches originally commissioned by NASA became U.S. government property, even commemorative ones, so they can't be auctioned without receiving prior approval. The organizers have seem to have withdrawn the Omega Speedmaster Professional from the sales while an issue is being resolved.

The auction held in Monaco a few days earlier showed us how much people are willing to pay for the exact same model if it hasn't belonged to an astronaut. Bidders only raised EUR 33,800 for the piece at the Exclusive Timepieces Auction.

Monaco Set the Bar

The sale organized by Monaco Legend Auctions went surprisingly well. They sold 96 percent of their 296 watches to raise a sales total of EUR 16,267,580. That's a wonderful result for a newcomer. The top lot in Monaco with a result of EUR 1,222,000 was the Patek Philippe Ref. 2438/1.

A possibly unique configuration of a perpetual calendar with a moon phase display and sweep central seconds in a 37-mm pink-gold case. It appears to have been made unique with an "Oversize" Arabic numeral dial for its long-term first owner who maintained the watch over its lifetime from the factory.

The auction also offered a Rolex Day-Date Ref. 6511 — one of the very first five "Day-Date Project" examples. The prototype was made in 1955, a year before the official launch of the watch, and it's housed in a 36-mm steel case. The first five watches were sent to Spanish dealers to test out the model's potential. This example fetched EUR 1,196,000. That's the second-highest final sales price.

The yellow-gold Daytona "John Player Special" Ref. 6241 with a "Paul Newman" dial estimated to fetch EUR 750,000 –⁠ 1,500,000 achieved EUR 1,027,000. Quick reminder: this model is special because it's made of 14K gold (watches with this case material were primarily made for the American market, where hallmark 585 gold is more affordable).

The example also combines a black and champagne-colored dial with a Jubilee bracelet, and it's incredibly well preserved. This watch achieved the third-highest final sales price.

A watch very similar to the top lot also achieved a decent result of EUR 403,000: Patek Philippe's 2497 perpetual calendar with sweep center seconds in a 37-mm yellow-gold case made by Wenger. Its dial features rare feuille hands.

In contrast, a disappointing result was achieved by Patek Philippe's Ref. 3979 automatic minute repeater unveiled in 1989 to celebrate the watchmaker's 150th anniversary. The world's first self-winding wristwatch minute repeater in a 33-mm yellow-gold  case made by the legendary case maker Jean-Pierre Hagmann sold for EUR 273,000.

A Reminder of the Benefits of an Auction Policy

The great leading watchmakers have long kept a close eye on the fate of their models on the pre-owned watch market, and sometimes they release limited editions especially for auction. It's not uncommon for watchmakers to play a direct role in their models' sales, and they're sometimes compelled to buy them.

But watchmakers find it easy to subsequently sell these watches to their clients or house them in their own museums. Collectors are well aware of this and enthusiastically put money on watches from these manufactures. With this in mind, you can notice that interest among buyers in watches by Audemars Piguet, Omega, and Breguet is gradually declining.

In Monaco for example, even Audemars Piguet's unique Quantieme Perpetual Calendar Open Face Pocket Watch Ref. 25 726BA didn't make much of an impression on the public. The model in a 47-mm yellow-gold case was worn as a wristwatch. The 1990s model which was number one in the series ultimately sold for EUR 104,000.

One of the most complicated watches sold for just EUR 188,500: the famous IWC Il Destriero Scafusia, released in 1993 to mark the 125th anniversary of the manufacture from Schaffhausen. It was the same story for a rare collector's platinum pocket watch and wristwatch set (believed to be one of fifteen in this material): Breguet's Souscription Ref. 3430 and Ref. 1819 from 1991. They sold for EUR 123,500.

No, watchmakers shouldn't ignore the existence of the pre-owned watch market. It isn't so hard to develop a coherent auction policy: just look at Cartier's success story. Models by this legendary watchmaker may not have sold for record prices in Monaco, but almost all of them went for multiples of their estimates. A white-gold Cartier Gondole model, which was given an estimate of EUR 25,000 –⁠ 50,000, sold for a solid EUR 325,000.

Christie's Banked On Hong Kong

Christie's live Important Watches Featuring "the Collectibles" Part 2, which closed in Hong Kong on October 27, certainly surprised and delighted with remarkable results. The live auction raised a surprising sum of HKD 191,847,860 (about USD 24,940,222). Not all Genevan auctions can achieve results like this these days.

Truth be told, it could be the British auction house's timing of the Hong Kong sale at the height of the Genevan auction season after last year's scandal. Why else would Christie's offer a selection of lots live in Hong Kong, which were in many ways much more interesting than the ones at Rare Watches in Geneva?

The top lot in Hong Kong was ultimately the Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 model from 1951. This watch's pink-gold case is what makes it rare, and the "FAB. SUISSE" signature printed on the dial even makes it a unique example.

On the one hand, the final sales price of HKD 19,130,000 (around USD 2,461,717) would have pleased the organizers (it's extremely rare for this kind of money to be paid at live auctions these days), but on the other hand, it didn't even come close to the upper estimate of HKD 32,000,000. 

Richard Mille's unique RM018 white-gold skeletonized tourbillon circa 2010, made to mark Boucheron's 150th anniversary, went for HKD 11,991,000 (about USD 1,543,045). There are two other watches worth mentioning, which both achieved the same result of HKD 6,300,000 (around USD 810,540), presumably acquired by one big fan of Patek Philippe. 

One was a Nautilus Flyback Chronograph Ref. 5980/1400R-012 from 2018, encrusted in no less than 893 brilliant-cut diamonds weighing approx. 4.468 carats, along with 182 baguette-cut diamonds weighing approx. 15.46 carats. The second was the Ref. 5074/1R-010 from 2019: another possibly unique minute repeater with a "Cathedral" repeating mechanism. Its 42-mm case and bracelet are both made of pink gold.

The unique bracelet is what makes the repeater unique, which must have been specially commissioned. This is the first time a full-gold version of Ref. 5074 has appeared at an auction. Needless to say, the new owner paid the same sum for each of the models, and didn't get two for the price of one.

Credits provided by: www.rrauction.com, www.monacolegendauctions.com, www.christies.com