The F.P. Journe Chronomètre à Résonance ‘Régence’ sold for CHF 8.68 million (approximately US$10.59 million) at Phillips’ Geneva sale this month. It was not the only watch to fetch a price that watch collectors rarely see on a price tag. The two-day auction at Hotel President brought in CHF 92 million across 217 lots, with every watch finding a buyer. The auction house says this is the first live watch auction to surpass US$100 million.Alexandre Ghotbi, Deputy Chairman and Head of Watches, Europe and Middle East, and Tiffany To, Senior International Watch Specialist and Head of Sale, said the first-ever $100 million watch auction was ‘an extraordinary milestone’.‘It is a testament to the impeccable quality of the watches, the remarkable diversity of the collection and, above all, the trust placed in us by our consignors and buyers,’ Ghotbi said in a release.The Régence was the highlight of a sale in which the prices across the board were already exceptionally high.A never-before-seen auctionPhillips, working with Bacs & Russo, held The Geneva Watch Auction: XXIV at Hotel President on 7 and 8 November. The room was crowded with prospective buyers. Phillips counted 2,121 registered bidders from 69 countries, competing for vintage rarities, independent watchmaking and timepieces with real historical significance. The sale produced 24 world records and 17 lots that sold for more than CHF 1 million, making for an extraordinary afternoon of bidding.The F.P. Journe that stole the showThe F.P. Journe Chronomètre à Résonance ‘Régence’ was the showstopper. It found a buyer for CHF 8,680,500. Phillips describes it as ‘the only example with a shiny pink-gold hand-engraved dial’. It was also the fifth consecutive live Phillips sale in which a watch surpassed US$10 million.F.P. Journe was the sale’s standout brand. Its 13 watches fetched a total of CHF 31.8 million, with buyers competing for the early pieces and rare editions. The auction house said the Régence attracted fierce competition in the room, over the phone and online. Many buyers had their hearts set on it.The auction also included watches from Rolex, Patek Philippe and other brands. A stainless-steel Patek Philippe Ref. 1436 split-seconds chronograph, one of only two known examples with its original steel case and dial, sold for CHF 6,267,000. A newly released Rolex Ref. 6062 ‘Stelline’ in 18-carat yellow gold, acquired from its original owner in Japan, reached CHF 2,334,500.Part I of the Pucci Papaleo Collection of Rolex chronographs brought in CHF 3,784,600 across 15 watches. The collection had been assembled over more than three decades, and buyers were drawn to its rarity, originality and condition. Cartier’s Portico Mystery Clock No. 4 reached CHF 4,815,000, setting a world auction record for any Cartier timepiece and marking its first auction appearance since 1996.Aurel Bacs, Phillips’ senior consultant, who has spent his career in this market, reflected on the sale. ‘As a twelve-year-old boy discovering vintage watches, I never imagined we would go from a few francs to hundreds, to thousands, to hundreds of thousands, and to millions. But the love and passion, and the respect for the watchmakers and collectors, were always there. I always believed that watches deserved a place on Mount Olympus of collecting.’
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