NEW YORK, NY.- Bonhams presents the firm’s biannual Fine Watches, Wristwatches & Clocks auction to be held on December 13 at 3pm ET. The sale will be viewed in the Bonhams Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York galleries and the auction will be conducted simultaneously in all three salesrooms. The auction features a wide variety of beautiful and rare timepieces, including: vintage pocket watches and wristwatches by Cartier, Vacheron Constantin, and Patek Philippe, fine handmade complicated wristwatches by Beat Haldimann and Kari Voutilainen, a wonderful selection of vintage and modern Rolex chronographs, several hand painted enamel wristwatches by Roger Dubuis and Patek Philippe, several beautiful and rare clocks and many fine vintage European and American pocket watches. With such diversity and fine craftsmanship, the December auction is sure to attract many collectors and admirers of horological art.
Perhaps no production wristwatch is more sought after than Patek Philippe’s reference 2499, a stellar example of which will be on offer this December (est. $250,000-350,000). This fresh to auction rare and very fine 18K gold chronograph wristwatch with registers, perpetual calendar and moon phases, is in splendid condition and represents the height of complexity achieved by wristwatch makers in the 1950s. The perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch has been continuously produced by Patek Philippe for 70 years since the introduction of Reference 1518. The increased production of successive models testifies to its status as one of the most desirable wristwatches in the world.
Beginning in the 1980s and continuing today, complicated handmade wristwatches have become increasingly popular amongst fine wristwatch collectors. A Beat Haldimann platinum precision wristwatch with central flying tourbillon on offer is an exquisite example of this trend (est. $60,000-80,000). Introduced at the 2002 Basel Fair, the HI tourbillon wristwatch embodies the belief of its creator, Beat Haldimann, that horology is an art. His atelier, located in Thun, Switzerland produces individually crafted watches and clocks to order without the use of automated machinery. Another magnificent example of handmade craftsmanship can be seen in a very fine stainless steel lever chronometer wristwatch with its Bulletin de Marche by Kari Voutilainen (est. $55,000-70,000).
The sale will also include many fine vintage Rolex chronographs, two of which are the property of famed racecar driver, Monte Shelton. The first of his two items, both to be sold without reserve, is a fine stainless steel Daytona bracelet watch circa 1978 (est. $20,000-30,000). Also up for auction is a fine stainless steel tachymeter chronograph wristwatch with unique champagne dial made for Mr. Shelton at the Rolex factory in Geneva, which was worn by the master driver for 46 years, throughout eleven Daytona 24 Hour races and much more ($25,000-35,000). Despite its long history, this rare and important watch was well preserved and will certainly be an auction highlight.
Other highlights include: a beautiful Cartier art deco rock crystal, lapis lazuli, jade and emerald boudoir clock (est. $25,000-50,000), a rare mirror image pair of enameled silver gilt center seconds watches for the Chinese market (est. $10,000-15,000), a very fine and rare platinum tourbillion wristwatch with power reserve and remontoire displaying dead beat seconds by F.P. Journe (est. $75,000-100,000), and a very fine platinum limited edition automatic wristwatch with painted and cloisonné enamel dial depicting the American bald eagle, signed by the enameller, Anita Porchet, made by Patek Philippe (est. $90,000-100,000).
