On April 9, Antiquorum will be holding its next auction in New York. On the block are some compelling (and holy) timepieces as well as a few other items that caught our eye, like Paul Newman’s racing suit and helmet and Heuer dashboard timers from the movie Le Mans. We already gave you a look at the unique IWC Pilot’s Watch Spitfire Chronograph Edition Tribeca Film Festival 2014 that will be up for sale, but here are my picks of other lots worth watching.
My first pick is a pocketwatch given to Pope Pius IX by the Swiss branch of the Catholic organization Piusverein (or the “Pius Association”) in 1877. The Piusverein was an association founded in 1848 in Mainz, Germany, to defend Catholic rights and http://www.hhibt.com/cheap-panerai-radiomir-uk.html interests throughout Europe. A Swiss branch of the Pius Association was founded in 1855.
According to Antiquorum, later “Pope Leo XIII gave the watch to Cardinal Francesco Salesio della Volpe, who was ‘Camerlengo’ of the Holy Roman Church. Cardinal Francesco Salesio della Volpe gave the watch to his cousin, Count Giuseppe Ginnasi Poggiolini di Imola. Count Giuseppe Ginnasi Poggiolini di Imola gave the watch to his daughter, Countess Nadia Ginnasi Poggiolini, the mother of the present owner. The initials ‘P.P.’ following the Pope’s name stand for the words Pastor Pastorum (Shepherd of Shepherds).” It is a beautiful piece for its simplicity, the harmonious dial, and the compelling architecture of the movement.
You can read more about Patek’s connection with Popes in this article by John Reardon. Back in 2009, this same watch sold for 19,500 CHF at Antiquorum and it is now back up for sale again. This time, the estimate is $15,000 to $25,000.
The Patek 3970 is for many one of Patek’s greatest watches, and what makes this one compelling is that it is in white gold. This is the first reference of Patek Philippe’s perpetual calendar chronographs serially made in white gold. The only earlier white-metal Patek perpetual calendar chronographs made were four steel reference 1518s and two platinum reference 2499s, including the one sold by Eric Clapton.
What I find so special about this one is something I really appreciated about Clapton’s 2499: http://www.hhibt.com/cheap-replica-tag-heuer-aquaracer-uk.html it clearly has been worn and enjoyed. You can see the scratches and dents on the case. It’s great to see a watch that has been enjoyed and worn as intended, not sealed away in a vault somewhere secure in its plastic sleeve.
The pre-sale estimate is $80,000 to $100,000.
And just a friendly reminder that you can read more about Patek Philippe perpetual calendar chronographs in our inaugural edition of Reference Points.
What makes this one so special is that it is an early Reverso made of white gold and appears to be in stunning all-original condition from the dial to the crown. The Luxe on the dial refers to the fact it is a higher-grade Reverso. The movement may have been adjusted to multiple positions (probably four positions) and it would be interesting to view the movement to see if that is the case. (Collector’s note: if you ever see a Swiss watch with “Luxe” or “De Luxe” it is in all likelihood a solid gold case.) It also has a beautiful dial and hands, which inspired the design of the highly successful Grande Reverso Ultra Thin Tribute to 1931. The dial on this one looks to have applied metal markers and minute track that were perhaps painted with radium.
The engraved initials are classic Art Deco. It is also interesting to note the crown above the GM initials. Usually, the use of a crown suggests a royal heritage. Reversos were the must-have watch for royalty back in the 1930s.
While Antiquorum says this Reverso Luxe dates to the 1940s, it wouldn’t surprise me if this was in fact from the early 1930s and among the earliest Reversos made. Perhaps it only says Reverso on the watch and the movement is signed Lisica, which is why it may have baffled catalogers and why the Antiquorum description does not mention Jaeger-LeCoultre. It is important that the 2516 be on the movement, case, and on the back of the bezel holding the crystal for this to be all original. We’d love to see an extract from Jaeger-LeCoultre for more details on this interesting piece.
While these vintage Reversos are significantly smaller than the current Grande Reverso Ultra Thin watches, that does not make them any less elegant or beautiful. This Reverso Luxe has an estimate of $5,000 to $8,000, which, if everything checks out on the watch, would be a steal.
Okay, so this isn’t a timepiece, but it is worth including anyway. Paul Newman’s Nomex racing suit and helmet from the early 1980s is too cool not to include. This apparently is one of two suits that Phil Avanzanto collected while working at Bob Sharp Racing from 1972 to 1987. The pre-sale estimate is $50,000 to $70,000.
It will be interesting to see where this one goes. Back in 2011, we showed you a racing suit worn by Steve McQueen in the movie Le Mans that sold for $984,000 at an auction. Funnily enough, the jacket had been sold for $155,000 only a few months before auction and you can read the story by Jeff Stein here.
Speaking of Steve McQueen and the film Le Mans, up for auction is a set of two dashboard timers (an Auto-Rallye and Monte Carlo) used in the movie. The key piece of provenance is the letter from Donald Nunley, the film’s prop master, saying that the clocks are real. Jack Heuer recruited Nunley to help him get Heuer timepieces into movies, in order to help market the brand. When Nunley became the property master for Le Mans, he immediately contacted Jack and asked for all kinds of Heuer equipment, including stopwatches, dashboard timers, and watches. (You can read the relevant excerpt from Jack Heuer’s autobiography here.)
These dashboard timers also reflect the 1970 timeframe of the movie. For instance, they have tritium markings on the dials, which were first added to Heuers and other Swiss timepieces in the mid-1960s.
This is the fourth interesting Le Mans item to come up for auction in recent years. Besides the aforementioned racing suit, Antiquorum sold a Monaco worn by McQueen http://www.hhibt.com/cheap-replica-rolex-gmt-uk.html in the film for $87,600 in 2009. TAG Heuer purchased it and it is now on display in TAG’s Museum in La Chaux-de-Fonds. It was one of three blue Monacos provided to Nunley by Heuer. Then, in 2012, another Monaco (this one only used for still photographs, not actually worn in the movie) sold for $799,500. And as a potential fifth item, McQueen wore a steel Rolex Submariner in the film’s first scene that may have been the reference 5512 that Antiquorum auctioned in 2009 for $234,000.
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