Auctions A Daytona With World Cup Provenance, A Piaget Designed By F.P. Journe, And What In The World Is The Kairos Collection? Here Are The Best Of The Rest At Auction This Week

I'm in Geneva this week for the first major swing of the auction calendar. Phillips, Antiquorum, Sotheby's, and Christie's have all put together some serious, heavy-hitting catalogs, filled with all sorts of special and interesting watches. On Sunday, I took a look at 24 of the lots I found most compelling at the two different Phillips auctions taking place, and now we'll be taking a look at a few of the top lots and highlights from the remaining three auctions on the calendar.

In the mid-1990s, a few years before he would launch his eponymous company, F.P. Journe was a freelance movement designer in Switzerland working for the highest bidder. Piaget, having been acquired by the Vendome Group (a precursor to the Richemont Group) in 1988, was looking to make a splash by introducing the most prestigious type of striking watch – a grand sonnerie. So they tapped Journe to design the Gouverneur Grande Sonnerie, with gongs visible through the dial, in a pink gold case that measures just 37mm × 12mm, still today one of the smallest grand sonnerie wristwatches of all time. One special feature of the Gouverneur Grande Sonnerie was a silencing feature Journe developed that allows the watch to function in two modes, either chiming or silence.

Much of the work that went into the Piaget Gouverneur Grande Sonnerie would later influence F.P. Journe's 2005 Sonnerie Souverain. It's been reported that the funds Journe earned from working on the Gouverneur Grande Sonnerie allowed him to open the doors of his own atelier a few years later. Only a few examples of the Gouverneur Grande Sonnerie are known to exist. Sotheby's states the one they have for bid requires a service, but given the white-hot state of the Journe market and the historic nature of the Gouverneur Grande Sonnerie, the watch carries what feels like a rather conservative estimate between CHF 40,000 - 80,000.

I first saw this watch a month ago when I stopped by Sotheby's Geneva during Watches & Wonders. This special Daytona was crafted for members of the Netherlands National Football/Soccer team that made it to the 2010 World Cup Final in South Africa, which they ended up losing against Spain. The story, according to Sotheby's, is that the Dutch national team filed a request to Rolex through Gassan Jewelers, a Rolex AD in Amsterdam, for a commemorative batch of 30 watches. Rolex agreed, creating a special white-gold Daytona 116509H with a unique black dial with orange accents.

The Sotheby's specialist I met with during W&W was working at Rolex at the time and admitted that he wasn't aware the watch existed until it was consigned at Sotheby's, speaking to how hush-hush Rolex goes about these sorts of things. Thirty Daytonas were created with this dial – 15 on a white gold bracelet; 15 on a leather strap – and they were gifted to all of the Dutch players on the final-qualifying squad in addition to a few important staff members. The example Sotheby's has comes from one of the players on the team and is engraved with the individual's last name and number on the caseback. As far as I can tell, this is the first example of the 30-piece series to become publicly available. Sotheby's has an estimate of CHF 60,000 - 100,000.

As far as I'm aware, this right here is the first 2915-1 to come to auction since last November's record-breaker at Phillips Geneva. The watch at Phillips sold for an unexpected, stunning total of more than $3.4 million, a record for any Omega watch at auction. Will this upcoming example at Sotheby's come close to that? Probably not.

While still an early, first-series 2915, it was produced a year after the Phillips watch and it's unlikely we'll see two bidders go crazy in the same way we did last fall. Interest – and subsequently, prices – for the Speedmaster 2915-1s have been on a steady increase over the past decade. After all, it really wasn't that long ago that they were selling for under $150,000, and then $275,000, and then really heating up at over $400,000 in 2018. No one expected the 2915-1 at Phillips to go so high, so it'll be interesting to see exactly where lot 48 settles and should potentially be more reflective of the reference's true current value.

This is purely a personal pick. I've always been more of a Royal Oak fan than a Nautilus one, but when I was able to handle this tropical dial 3700 in person for the first time I was blown away. The dial has aged to a rich chocolate brown hue, with slight discolorations throughout, a perfect complement to the deep tone of the yellow gold case and bracelet.

Across town, Phillips has a few 3700 options in their upcoming Geneva Watch Auction, including a 1978 3700 in steel with a tropical dial, but I opted not to include any of them in my picks. But this Nautilus is different – it absolutely sings in person and on the wrist. It has an estimate of CHF 200,000 - 400,000.

An instant classic from Patek Philippe when it was released in 2008, the 5207 is a tremendously complicated wristwatch that is surprisingly elegant. It puts a minute repeater, a tourbillon, and an instantaneous perpetual calendar into a single wristwatch, here offered in the classical combination of a salmon dial and platinum case.

The 5207P has been produced in very low numbers over the years and rarely comes up for auction. Phillips sold a double-sealed example in 2020 for CHF 567,000, while Antiquorum brought one to market in 2018 that went for CHF 509,000. The watch world is in a different place now than it was even just two years ago, so it's really hard to guess where lot 143 could end up. Sotheby's thinks it'll go somewhere between CHF 500,000 and 800,000.

Sotheby's sourced 46 different Royal Oaks to include in this auction, dedicating over 33 percent of the entire sale to the model that celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. I'll be going Hands-On with the most important Royal Oak in the sale, Gérald Genta's personal watch, over the weekend, but there's some pretty cool, off-the-beaten-path Royal Oaks worth featuring, such as lot 104, a 36mm platinum Royal Oak ref. 14790 in a mid-size 36mm case with a white dial and Roman numerals at six and nine o'clock.

It's an unusual watch, I'm not going to lie, but I think I kind of dig it? The Roman numerals and clean white lacquer dial add a bit of a classical touch to the Royal Oak's recognizable octagonal form factor that's filled with harsh lines and angles. What makes this watch extra, extra special though is the number on the caseback: "No. 001." Numero uno, baby. We'll have to wait and see next week where it lands in relation to its estimate of CHF 50,000 - 100,000.

A much more modern Royal Oak than most featured in this week's auction, lot 112 is part of a limited run of watches – potentially 25 in total – first released circa 2015. The watch features a tourbillon and a chronograph visible through an openworked dial and placed inside of a 44mm bead-blasted titanium case.

What I like about this example is how it feels clearly influenced by the futuristic aesthetics of the Royal Oak Concept series, but it's also clearly very faithful to the original Royal Oak design language with the lume-filled baton hands and applied hour markers. Sotheby's has an estimate of CHF 200,000 - 400,000 here.

One of my favorite In-Depth historical articles we've published in the last few years is James' deep dive into early Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendars, which places a clear emphasis on the importance of the early 25654 reference. On Sunday I showed you a few examples that Phillips has coming up this weekend, but one variant I didn't highlight is the yellow-gold 25654BA, as seen here.

Phillips will, in fact, actually have one up for grabs, but the one that you see above is particularly notable given Sotheby's states it was produced in 1984, the year the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar was officially announced to the world. Lot 121 has an estimate of CHF 160,000 - 240,000.

And here we have a ref. 25554BA Royal Oak QP, which followed the very first RO QP, the ref. 5554, but is still part of the first generation of perpetual calendar-equipped Royal Oaks. Sure, the 25554 Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar is a rare watch in a vacuum, but lot 124, seen here, is particularly notable for its combination of a yellow gold case with a matte black dial that utilizes gilt hands, hour markers, and accents. The resulting high-contrast effect is as brilliantly attractive as it is rare. It carries an estimate of CHF 150,000 - 300,000.

The Sotheby's "Important Watches" auction takes place at the Mandarin Oriental in Geneva, on May 10, 2022. You can explore the full catalog and register to bid, right here. 

Christie's is taking those 128 watches and disseminating them through their spring auction season, starting with Monday's Rare Watches sale in Geneva, and then on to Hong Kong on May 24, and New York on June 8. Although packed with 65 Pateks, the 158-lot sale has plenty of other interesting watches that will be up for grabs on May 9.

Eric Clapton is a prodigious collector. We all know that. After all, I just pointed out a Rolex Daytona ref. 6239 once owned by the legendary guitarist that will be available this weekend at Phillips, but Christie's has sourced a pretty cool Patek with Slowhand provenance of its own, as well. The Perpetual Calendar ref. 1526 seen here isn't the first time it's come across Christie's rostrum. You might recall that, way back in 2003, Christie's hosted an auction in New York that included a large selection of watches consigned directly by Clapton himself. The upcoming Daytona at Phillips was sold there, and so was this little yellow gold 34mm QP from Patek.

Now, if you know your QP history, you'll understand that the 1526 is a pretty important little watch, with or without Slowhand's name attached to it. It was the first perpetual calendar wristwatch ever produced in series, from anyone anywhere, and only 210 examples (mostly in yellow gold, like this example) are believed to have been produced, from 1941 to 1952. Briggs Cunningham owned a particularly sweet example, but the Clapton watch is no slouch either, featuring a third-series, Mark 1 dial. It's consigned today directly from the individual who purchased it 19 years ago for $77,675. (Interestingly, this is one of the few high-profile Pateks in the sale not to come from the Kairos Collection.) Christie's believes it will end up slightly higher than that figure, with an estimate of CHF 80,000 to 120,000. I agree.

It's become a common complaint to criticize the contemporary design decisions of Patek Philippe – their vintage watches are just that incredible that anything but the very best can feel substandard. It's an enviable – if difficult to manage – position to be in. But when those conversations come up, I just think of certain watches such as the ref. 5959, seen here, and remember that Patek still has the juice to come up with watches that look incredible, maintain horological merit, and pay homage to the company's past.

Patek Philippe crafted just 15 examples of the 5959R-001 across a single year, from 2016 to 2017. This particular example was sold by Tiffany & Co. in New York, although it does not feature the much-desired retailer signature, and it does in fact come from the Kairos Collection. The watch, at first glance, looks like a vintage watch even though it has the shine and luster of a brand-new one. That's because Patek modeled the design after the company's first-ever split-seconds chronograph wristwatch from 1923 (check it out here), including screw bars and an oversize crown, with the primary exception of the monopusher mechanism via the three o'clock crown and the use of a snap-on caseback rather than a hinged one. You'll immediately notice the lovely combination of a polished 18k rose gold case with a black opaline dial featuring printed gilt Breguet numerals – just stunning. Oh, and did we mention it measures just 33mm in diameter? Yeah. Where else can you find a complicated chronograph that is as beautiful and as traditional as this? Nowhere, just Patek.

The last and only other time (that I can find) that we saw a 5959R come for auction, it was four years ago at Phillips in Geneva, where it sold for CHF 352,800. (We have, however, seen the reference's platinum-cased sibling, the 2005 5959P appear more often, most recently at Sotheby's Hong Kong.) Christie's is seemingly basing its estimate on those previous results, with lot 65 carrying a figure between CHF 140,000 and 230,000.

The very next lot in the sale is a special version of one of the more beloved Patek striking models of the 21st century, the ref. 5074. This is a hybrid perpetual calendar and minute repeater (with extra-long cathedral gongs!) that was first launched in a 42mm white gold case over 20 years ago, in 2001; a pink gold option was added to the catalog in 2005. However, it's understood that the more common option offered to clients – if there is such a thing when it comes to the 5074 – was a silvered dial in the pink gold case. The black dial, as seen here, is believed to be the more exclusive option.

That said, in total, the Christie's lot notes point out that it's estimated less than 50 total examples were built in pink gold, across both dial options, over its lifespan. The last time we saw a black-dialed 5074R come up for air was last May at Antiquorum Geneva, where it sold for precisely CHF 400,000. Christie's is aiming for that sweet spot, with an estimate on lot 66 of CHF 330,000 to 510,000.

Here, in lot 199 of the sale, we have a Patek 3448 – one of the great Geneva watchmaker's most famous historic wristwatches. It was the first automatic perpetual calendar to be placed in serial production, a testament to Patek's expertise in complex calendars. It's understood that only 568 examples of the 3448 were ever produced, between 1962 and 1985, with the vast majority crafted in yellow gold, as seen in this example.

What makes lot 199 especially unique, however, is that it's one of only three known examples with a second signature on the dial from the Roman retailer Hausmann & Co. Plus – it's 100 percent fresh to market. As such, Christie's has assigned it an estimate in the range of CHF 150,000 to 200,000.

It's not often that we see a vintage Breguet make the auction circuit. But here we have such a watch – a stainless-steel triple calendar chronograph, with a pointer date, a six o'clock moonphase display, and a tachymeter scale on the dial periphery, all powered by a hand-winding Valjoux 88 caliber inside.

To put it bluntly, this is a downright rare watch. Christie's says that less than 10 total examples are known to the public. Despite the single-digit total, it's clear that Breguet produced its triple calendar moonphase chronograph sporadically across three decades in the middle of the 20th century – the '50s, '60s, and '70s – which likely indicates it was only ever built on the specific request of clients. Christie's has provided an estimate of CHF 100,000 to 200,000 for lot 40.

Have we reached peak Crash? Or will the Crash, pardon the pun, crash? As we wait with anticipation to see how the Cartier Week at Loupe This (the online auction platform run by our old pal Eric Ku) – which currently has two Crash examples available; a Cartier Paris, dated 1991, and a Cartier London, dated 1967 – we'll have another Crash to look forward to at Christie's with lot 133.

The Crash has always been made in small series production, typically by hand, and this 1990 Cartier London example is no different. When "Cartier London" and "Crash" come together, my mind immediately jolts to the late 1960s/early '70s versions, similar to the one on Loupe This and the record-breaking example that sold last November at Sotheby's Geneva for CHF 806,500. But by all appearances, this 'noughties model is straight kosher. The dial is signed with the signature Cartier London cursive script, and the deployant clasp, also rendered in "Crash" style, features the appropriate hallmarks that date it to Cartier London in 1990. It will be an interesting test of the Crash market to see just where this example, and the pair listed on Loupe This, end up. Christie's believes it will be under CHF 300,000 all-in, with a given estimate of CHF 180,000 to 280,000.

Are we having fun yet? Here's an extra exceptional (and sparkly) Rolex Daytona to wake you up. The remarkable ref. 6269 "Jack Of Diamonds" was released in the mid 1980s, in the final years of production for the manual-wind Daytona, and features an eye-popping combination of an 18k yellow gold case, with a bezel set with 48 brilliant-cut diamonds and a dial that's been pavé-set with 248 round white diamonds and nine sapphires set as to represent each hour marker not blocked by one of the three chronograph sub-dials.

As you might assume, especially with Christie's estimate between CHF 1,100,000 and 2,000,000, the "Jack of Diamonds Daytona" is crazy rare. And this example, lot 38, is unique in that it's both fresh to market and features the memorable "owl"-shaped French import stamp for gold on the caseback, in addition to the Rolex France logo ("Sté*R", for Société Rolex) on the caseback and bracelet clasp. Only one other example of the 6269 is known to feature the same hallmarks, making lot 38 a true collectors' gem that's impossible to forget.

Vintage Rolex is defined by minutia. The smallest details make the biggest difference. Just take lot 129. It's not just a Daytona, it's a "Paul Newman" Daytona. It's not just a PND, it's 6264 PND in yellow gold. Oh, and it has a "lemon" dial, which references the specific light-toned shade of yellow of the dial. But of all the lemon Paul Newman Daytonas out there, very few share identical aesthetic traits to lot 129.

No more than eight known examples, including this watch, have white printing on the sub-dials rather than the traditional gilt design. And of those eight examples, only one other watch alongside lot 129 have gone tropical; both dating to a 1970 production year. On this watch, that means the darker portions of the dial – namely the outer minute track and the three sub-dials – have transitioned over time from their original black hue to brown. Last time we took a deep dive into the auction market as a whole, after the New York sales in December 2021, we discussed how the vintage Rolex market is stable, with the potential to lean soft. A heavy-hitting, extremely esoteric vintage Daytona should be just the thing to help us see where things stand.

Phillips has a lot of ground covered in its Royal Oak 50th Anniversary sale, but they don't have every single good Royal Oak up for grabs this week. Here we have a special 5402BC, circa 1977, number 29 out of 150 pieces in total, but one of the only – if not unique – examples with a full, even tropical dial and diamond hour markers. Phillips has a very nice 5402BC of their own that's worth checking out in the thematic auction, but I think the one to watch this week is lot 149 at Christie's – and the estimate honestly reflects that. Christie's has placed the estimate between CHF 200,000 and 400,000.

Here's another example of an offbeat Royal Oak with Roman numerals and a lacquer white dial. Unlike the ref. 14790PT we looked at from Sotheby's earlier in this story, lot 155 at Christie's is a complicated perpetual calendar, with moonphase, and eight visible, elongated Roman numerals across the dial. There's no tapissiere pattern in sight.

Of course, as we've discussed, the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar is a true '80s baby, so it only makes sense that Audemars Piguet offered an example in the decade's watch metal of choice: two-tone. The 25654 was part of the very original batch of RO QPs, remaining in production until 1993. In that period, from the launch of the model in 1984 (the 25654's direct predecessor, the 5645, was "soft-launched" in 1982), a total of 800 watches were produced in a variety of metals, including 72 in two-tone, making it the rarest metal for the 25654. Out of those 72, an even smaller figure featured the combination of a smooth lacquered dial with Roman numerals. Lot 155 has an estimate of CHF 80,000 to 120,000.

A Royal Oak Offshore! Finally. Phillips made the purposeful decision to not include any Royal Oak Offshore models, no matter how rare or desirable, in their thematic sale in order to keep things focused on the original format (though they did include a few neat ones in the catalog for Geneva Watch Auction: XV catalog). But Christie's saved the day by bringing the Offshore heat with lot 138.

Billed by Christie's as "highly impressive" and "probably unique" – four words that I wish my parents would say about me – this blingy white-gold Offshore dates to around 2000 and features a total of 584 diamonds that were factory-set across the case, bezel, and bracelet, measuring a total of 12.62 carats. The potentially unique aspect of the watch comes from its white gold construction, according to Christie's lot notes. It was also engraved with the number "13" on the caseback, at the request of the original owner. Lot 138 appears to be fresh to market and has an estimate of CHF 100,000 to 200,000.

The Christie's "Rare Watches: Featuring The Kairos Collection, Part I" auction takes place at the Four Seasons Hotel Des Bergues in Geneva, on May 9, 2022. You can explore the full catalog and register to bid, right here.

It's a fairly democratic operation – ahem, that means do your own research – so it attracts a wide variety of buyers and dealers who might be priced-out at Phillips or elsewhere. All of that means, of course, is that there are fewer historically important or unique pieces available, but there are still plenty of interesting watches to see and people to watch. Here are three that caught my eye.

The only Darth Vader I was familiar with before noticing lot 515 here was the one who hated sand and the awesome and highly coveted early 2000s Lange 1 "Darth" from A. Lange & Söhne. I wasn't aware of any Rolex that had the nickname, but here it is – a modern ref.16520 Daytona with a dial defect that causes it to subtly turn darker with time, giving it a very cool, faded appearance.

To be completely honest, I wasn't sure if this was a real thing or not, but I quickly found three previous lots that sold at Phillips (here and here) and Sotheby's (here), which are all the confirmation I need for the existence of the Rolex "Darth Vader." Antiquorum has the estimate currently at CHF 35,000 to 55,000, but it'll be an interesting lot to watch; the most recent result from Sotheby's (November 2021) featured an example that sold for more than CHF 160,000.

I'll keep this one brief. This Greubel Forsey GMT is no more special than any other Greubel Forsey GMT (which, in all honesty, is quite special), but it is coming to auction at an interesting time. Greubel Forsey announced the discontinuation of its GMT, arguably its most recognizable watch, last fall, which could potentially translate to an increase in interest in the model at auction. I'll be watching and waiting. Specs-wise, lot 121 is the flagship example in platinum that Antiquorum notes was limited to just 198 pieces over its decade-long lifespan, from 2011 to 2021. It has an estimate of CHF 250,000 to 500,000.

We already showed you the back-winding Royal Oak Tourbillon 25831 that's coming up at Phillips this week; well here's that watch's heavier-metal ('cause it's platinum, duh), skeletonized sibling, the ref. 25902. The lot notes say that Audemars Piguet confirmed that they believe only 11 examples of the 25902 were produced, five in pink gold and six in platinum, as seen here. The watch features the same movement as the 25821, self-winding caliber 2875, that features no crown on the caseband and instead incorporates a lever on the caseback.

The watch, lot 433, appears to feature brilliant engraving on the movement bridges visible through the sapphire crystal on both sides of the case; on that note, it feels somewhat intrusive to have the crown sitting so prominently on the exhibition caseback, compared to the closed caseback on the steel 25831. I also noticed that although the tourbillon cage shares the same tripartite bridge with the 25831, the openworking process on the 25902 removed the octagonal form that made the tourbillon cage on the original watch stand out. It's an interesting watch to say the least, and I didn't even mention the use of Roman numerals for the 12-hour timekeeping display. Antiquorum has provided an estimate of CHF 400,000 to 600,000.

The Antiquorum "Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces" auction takes place at the Hôtel Beau-Rivage in Geneva, on May 7-8, 2022. You can explore the full catalog and register to bid, right here.