Bring a Loupe A Cartier London Decagon, A Rolex Oyster Perpetual With Breguet Numerals, And A Universal Genève 'Polarouter'

Before I rant about rare some more, let's tie a bow on the last edition of "old Hodinkee's" favorite article of the week. The UG Tri-Compax with awful photos remains available as does TanTan's Grand Seiko pick (hey, BAL picking isn't for everyone, it's okay T2). Tennants Auctioneers will offer the Movado Ermeto for Cartier tomorrow. And for results, our Mido Multifort sold for $279 and the Parmigiani chronograph at Phillips soared past the "sucker" estimate, selling for CHF 19,050.

Rare doesn't necessitate expensive. Sure, rare watches can command a premium, but that premium is only justified when a watch sits at the intersection of rare and desirable. Let's get into the picks.

The Rolex Oyster Perpetual reference 1002 is not a rare watch. Yet, with this dial it certainly is. To be exact, there are three examples of this dial known to the market. When I first encountered one of the three while in Geneva for auctions back in May, I was floored. This is Rolex nerd heaven. With the simple change of applied hour markers to large printed Breguet numerals, a "standard" OP is really elevated.

The known watches have all come to market somewhat recently and scholarship on these has been evolving. On all three, the reverse of the dial is signed in a similar fashion by Beyeler, a Rolex dial supplier of the time, leading to the theory that they all belong to the same, presumably small, batch and were produced at the same time. This case, dating to 1976, is the earliest known so far but the others date to just a few years later.

Not only do the Breguet numerals create rarity, but they also do a lot for the overall look. In May, I wasn't floored simply because it was a vintage Rolex I had never seen before. Sure, that was a factor. But adding to it was how well the design worked and how charming the simple OP was. It is no surprise, as my favorite Pateks feature Breguet numerals. But there is something even more charming about these rare OPs because the style is just very un-Rolex-like, for lack of a better fake word.

The seller, Wes at Collectors Corner NY, is offering this one of three Rolex for $29,900. Check it out right here.

With a similar number of known watches as our Rolex Oyster Perpetual, this Cartier London Decagon offered at a small auction house in Oakland popped up in my searches this week. I was shocked, to say the least. In fact, I figured it was fake. Just to be sure, I reached out to Clars Auctions, the seller, requesting a photo of the movement and inside caseback. Turns out, it's real.

When a Cartier London watch like this comes up for sale, it can warrant a full-blown Hodinkee article on its own. The magic of London-made watches in this period has been covered over and over and backed up by the market time and time again, but it's worth reiterating. What you get in Cartier London is a lot of the same charm as the earliest 1910s Cartier watches, in that they are handmade, one at a time, but with 1960s techniques and understanding – plus, these London watches are simply more wearable. Cartier London is more than just the original Crash, Pebble, and Maxi Oval; we see other odd-yet-true-to-the-Cartier-aesthetic shapes from London in the 1960s. The Decagon is one of these shapes.

The last Decagon to go to auction well exceeded estimates, selling for €55,900 all-in at Monaco Legends Group in October of 2021. I was lucky enough to handle two Decagons on a visit to Justin Gruenberg's shop, The Keystone, and I can confirm the model is really special. It's actually somewhat ugly, or as Malaika Crawford put it, "ugly beautiful."

Bidder beware: If you haven't clocked it by now, this Decagon at Clars is fitted with what appears to be a later Cartier service dial. It hurts the value but does not make it any less rare. Bid accordingly!

This Cartier London Decagon is lot 5115 of the Exquisite Diamonds & Watches Auction at Clars Auctions. The estimate is $5,000-7,000.

The Universal Genève Polerouter is at the very core of the Hodinkee vintage watch experience. Beyond simply being a great watch to own and wear, the model has an interesting history that is well covered around the watch world and especially on the pages of Hodinkee. There is a whole book about the Polerouter! To put it quickly and stick to what is relevant for this particular watch, the Polerouter, eventually, and Polarouter, as we see here, is the result of a project involving SAS (Scandinavian Airlines Systems) and Universal Genève. In 1954, SAS first flew direct from Copenhagen to Los Angeles, traveling over the North Pole. It was a bigger deal than it may read here in 2024. Anyway, SAS contracted UG to create a watch to celebrate, UG supposedly contracted a 23-year-old Gérald Genta, and, boom, the Polarouter was born, commemorating the "polar flight."

The Polarouter spelling did not last very long. None of these are typos by the way – I am being very careful. About a year later, in 1955, Polarouter was out and Polerouter was in. In all, about 300 watches bearing the name Polarouter were created, half with a SAS logo on the dial.

The example we have here is a part of the reportedly 170 watches made for commercial use with Polarouter text. In the world of Polerouters, where around 1,000 different references exist, 170 examples means rare. I can personally say that while I have been looking for a black-dial Polarouter for around five years, I have only seen two or three come up for sale.

This example is a silver dial and while it may not be exactly what I have been looking for, the condition is great and the overall patina is attractive. One "flaw" to note is a replacement crown, as the seller calls out.

Waecce Watches in Beverley, UK, is offering this Polarouter for $4,686. Get all the details right here.

I have a soft spot and an eBay saved search for Gubelin watches. You should know them as a long-time retailer of Patek Philippe, but Gubelin is not all about retailing Patek. The Lucerne-based brand also arranged the production of white-label products that are simply signed "Gubelin." The quality of these watches does vary a bit; at the highest end, Gubelin watches were made by Audemars Piguet, but even at the lower end they were made by brands like Eterna.

The watch we have here is a great example of Gubelin's white label quality in the vintage era. I believe this was produced around the same time as the retailer's 100th anniversary in 1954. To celebrate the milestone, Gubelin contracted AP to produce a batch of 200 watches now known as the Jubilee series. After requesting a movement photo from the eBay seller, this particular Gubelin is likely not produced by Audemars. But the quality of the dial and case is very similar. My guess is that this watch was made to be a slightly lower-priced yet similar-looking alternative to the APs in Gubelin's case.

While who produced it is an unknown, what I do know is that the watch is rare. Dress watches signed by a brand as well regarded as Gubelin and set with baguette-diamond cardinal indices do not pop up every day, especially in white gold. See some of the 1950s contemporaries in this article by Malaika – if they were rare for Patek, they were rare for everyone at the time.

An eBay seller out of St. Louis has put this Gubelin up for auction ending Sunday, September 15, at 9:30 PM ET. At the time of publishing, bidding was at $810.

Lastly, we have a little UG, literally. It is 30mm in diameter, with a case made by François Borgel. My love for FB cases knows no bounds, and I just keep finding them – but this is a new one for me. I have not been able to find very many Universals with FB cases and after a quick search, I can't seem to find another example of this particular reference. So, honestly, it's a bit of a mystery watch but one that I believe is quite rare as well. To my eye, nothing looks wrong or off about the watch in terms of authenticity, but I will be vulnerable and ask someone in the comments to correct me if needed!

An eBay seller from Boca Raton, FL, has listed this Universal Genève for auction ending Sunday, September 15, at 10:06 PM ET. At the time of publishing, bidding was at $42.