PATEK PHILIPPE
This first Patek Philippe series, reference 2499, was purchased by the current owners' late father in the early 60's in Caracas, Venezuela and is completely new to “S. & L." and “18K”, “S. & L." and “18K”, “S. & L." and ” .. calendar discs for day and month are in Spanish to date, no other ref 2499, all four series combined, sold by Patek Philippe's celebrated representative in Venezuela is known to exist (estimate: CHF / US$1,500,000-2,500,000 – illustrated above left It was made by Wenger, one of the most famous case makers in Geneva at the time, denoted by the numbered 1 key symbol at the insides of the snap on the back.The cases of early reference 2499 are were supplied by Vichet (key feature 9), with a smaller diameter of 36,2 mm., a concave case back and more elongated lugs. Completing the top lot are two additional world-class vintage Patek Philippe watches. Another recent discovery Patek Philippe reference 2438-1, made in 1959, one of the company's rarest perpetual calendars, was delivered by the original owner's family, who have kept it in excellent condition, as well as the ownership of another major private collector and the second exceptional Patek Philippe reference 2499 in the auction, it is a fourth series of reference 2499 / 100. in this example, made in 1981, it is one of the “legends” of the reference – with tachymeter scale dial – perhaps unique with this dial layout (estimate : CHF/US$550,000-950,000).
ROLEX
Important Rolex timepieces naturally feature in this auction, led by a stainless steel Paul Newman “Panda” reference 6263 with a Mk I dial. Delivered from the original owner's family it carries an estimate of CHF 300.000 to CHF 500.000. the cloisonné enamel dials are always a highlight: it is the cloisonné enamel “Neptune”, reference 8382, perhaps unique on this reference, which was consigned by a major private collector, the estimate is CHF 350.000 Another great Rolex rarity is a rose gold almost never seen in the world Rolex watches with the Louis Cottier system, circa 1945, one of only three known to date (estimate CHF/US$85.000 – 125.000) .
A highlight of the strong 26-lot pocket watch section is from the property of the late Claude Nobs, founder of the celebrated Montreux Jazz Festival: a Patek Philippe enamel watch entitled “Apollon et Issé” decorated with a unique enamel painting after François Boucher created by master enamellist G. Menni in 1985, who worked for Patek Philippe on several commissioned pieces throughout the 80s. Accompanying the watch is a magnificent and unique Patek Philippe gold and enamel watch holder named “le Lion” with an impressive gold weight of over 1 kilo. This set formed part of the interior of Nobs' mystical chalet 'le Picotin' and admired by countless musicians and artists he entertained over the decades (estimate for the set is CHF/US$150,000-250,000). Additional pocket watches with famous provenance include Walter P. Chrysler's great American industrialist Audemars Piguet pocket watch, with 9 complications, including a perpetual calendar minute repeater and a split seconds chronograph, allowing you to read the times of two events in the same time, for example, two racing cars, and has a 60-minute counter for individual events of more than an hour in duration. It was gifted to Mr. Chrysler by his friend and business partner James C. Brady, owner of Maxwell Motor Company in 1922, estimate CHF/US$100.000 – 200.000.
In early September the first International Watchmaking Forum took place at Christie's in London, including a panel discussion dedicated to independent British watchmaking. Following this, the Geneva sale will offer pieces by some of the most renowned independent Swiss Watch makers, including beautiful works by Laurent Ferrier, Thomas Prescher, Maîtres du Temps “Chapter One” by Christophe Claret & Peter Speake-Marin, and Mermod Freres. Maîtres du Temps' impressive “Chapter One” is a tour de force of highly sophisticated yet practical functions and a world-first combination of complications made of 558 components: to date, no other wristwatch features a single-button tourbillon chronograph , retrograde date .. and retrograde GMT days and, in addition, rolling week and moon phase displays The watch offered is No. 1 of a limited edition of only 11 examples made. (estimate: CHF/US$70,000-100,000) the “Chapter One” model is the . The result of a collaboration, it was designed and crafted by two legendary master watchmakers: Christophe Claret and Peter Speake-Marin.. Christophe Claret's exceptional movements are notable for their precision, reliability, and complexity. Peter Speake-Marin, Chapter One expresses its knowledge of the historical tradition of haute horlogerie and transfer its faith in its future. An incredible mechanical ingenuity is the “Primo 4 Jukebox” by Mermod Frères, which was made in a limited edition of 50 pieces in each white, rose and yellow gold in 2007. The Primo 4 is the only mechanical watch with a music that provides four songs on four separate music discs. the music, stored on four separate mini-discs located at the four points of the compass, is read using the principle of the juke box. to listen to a song, simply press the button. This operation can be repeated as often as desired (estimate: CHF / US $ 20.000- 30.000).
INTERNATIONAL TOURS:
DUBAI 03 – 04 OCTOBER
BANGKOK 11 – 12 OCTOBER
HONG KONG 22 – 23 OCTOBER
TAIPEI 25 – 26 OCTOBER
