Vladimir Putin’s $60,000 Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar Wristwatch

(Putin wearing his Patek Philippe)

Vladimir Putin is not only a Russian politician. He is the current Prime Minister as well as chairman of United Russia, and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when President Boris Yeltsin resigned in a surprising move, and then Putin won the 2000 presidential election. In 2004, he was re-elected for a second term lasting until 7 May 2008.
Putin is not only the Prime Minister, he is also passionate according to action activities. Apart from being a judo black belt, a fervent explorer of volcanoes, dips in Siberian rivers and plummets deep down lakes in mini submarines, he is a luxury Swiss watches looms large lover. Among the Russian politicians, Putin wears the most expensive watches, such as a $60,000 Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar watch and, also, he owns a Patek Philippe Calatrava.

(Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar watch)

Price Realized $60,000

PLATINUM AUTOMATIC PERPETUAL CALENDAR WRISTWATCH WITH MOON-PHASE DISPLAY

Calibre 240 Q, 27 jewels, Gyromax balance, 22k gold minirotor, opaline-white dial with white gold applied hour markers and pearled minute divisions, two bevelled engine-turned subdials for the month with leap year and day with 24-hour indication, analogue date with integrated moon-phase display, two-part case, snap-on case back, platinum PP buckle, case, dial and movement signed.


Patek Philippe‘s calibre 240 Q is the most splendid illustration of the manufacturer’s confident style and technical skills. It features 275 miniscule parts in a compact marvel incredibly thin due in part to the integrated off-centred 22k gold minirotor.

[Source: Patek Philippe]
Putin’s picture: AFP

Filed under: Luxury, Luxury Watch, luxury watches, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar Wristwatch, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, President Watch, President Watches, Presidents Watches, Timepiece, Vladimir Putin, Vladimir Putin's $60.000 Patek Philippe, Vladimir Putin's Patek Philippe, Vladimir Putin's Patek Philippe Wristwatch, Watch, Watches, wristwatches

Patek Philippe: Trossi Leggenda

A wristwatch belonging to an Italian mogul who takes pride in having won Grand Prix races and was president of Ferrari generated a sales of £1.1million against its pre-auction estimate of $1.9 million after selling off his gold Patek Philippe timepiece at Sothey’s Geneva auction house.

Count Carlo Felice Trossi’s priciest possession called the “Trossi Leggenda”, described as “really revolutionary” by experts, was the highlight amidst the other 200 timepieces. Trossi by profession was a racing driver, pilot and speedboat racer whose motor-racing triumphs count the 1947 Italian Grand Prix. Besides this another gold Rolex known as “Oyster Daytona Paul Newman” dating back to 1980 got sold for £76,000 almost two-fold of its pre-auction estimate of £25,000 to £40,000. The watch was christened after the Florida car race and for the American actor who helped promote this style.

Count Carlo Felice Trossi was born in Biella, Italy, April 27, 1908 and died in Milan, May 9, 1949. Trossi was an Italian race car driver and auto constructor. During his career, he raced for two teams, Mercedes-Benz and Alfa Romeo. He won the 1947 Italian Grand Prix and the 1948 Swiss Grand Prix. He died at only 41 years of age (brain tumor).

Trossi backed one of the most unusual Grand Prix cars, the Trossi Monaco of 1934. This car featured a 16 cylinder, two stroke cycle, two row radial, air cooled engine and an aircraft-like body designed by Augusto Monaco. The car was a spectacular failure and never raced in a Grand Prix event.

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Filed under: Luxury, Luxury Alfa Romeo, Luxury Auction, Luxury Jewels, Luxury Watch, luxury watches, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Timepiece, Watch, Watches, wristwatches

Madoff auction welcomes bids on wristwatches like: Rolex, Ulysse Nardin, Blancpain, Piaget, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, IWC and Jaeger LeCoultre.

(Bernard Lawrence “Bernie” Madoff)

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Bernard Lawrence “Bernie” Madoff was born on April 29, 1938. He is the former Chairman of the NASDAQ stock exchange and the admitted operator of the Ponzi scheme that might be “the largest investment fraud in Wall Street history”.
In March 2009, Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 felonies and admitted to turning his wealth management business into a massive Ponzi scheme that defrauded thousands of investors of billions of dollars. Madoff said he began the Ponzi scheme in the early 1990s. However, federal investigators believe the fraud began as early as the 1980s. The amount missing from client accounts, including fabricated gains, was almost $65 billion. The court appointed trustee estimated actual losses to investors of $18 billion. On June 29, 2009, he was sentenced to 150 years in prison, the maximum allowed.
Madoff founded the Wall Street firm Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC in 1960, and was its chairman until his arrest on December 11, 2008. The firm was one of the top market maker businesses on Wall Street, which bypassed “specialist” firms by directly executing orders over the counter from retail brokers.
On December 10, 2008, Madoff’s sons told authorities that their father had just confessed to them that the asset management arm of his firm was a massive Ponzi scheme, and quoting him as saying it was “one big lie”. The following day, FBI agents arrested Madoff and charged him with one count of securities fraud. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had previously conducted several investigations into Madoff’s business practices since 1992, which critics contend were incompetently handled.
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Madoff lots are 196-299 & 301-386.
U.S.Marshals Service
National Forfeited Jewelry Auction
Saturday, November 14, 2009 at 10 AM
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During the auction conducted live on Saturday, November 14th at the New York Sheraton Hotel & Towers and online simulcast utilizing http://www.proxibid.com., many of Madoff’s belongings were auctioned. And so, his wristwatch collection. Between the wristwatch brands he was a fun, like Rolex, there were many Cartier, Ulysse Nardin, Blancpain, IWC, Hublot, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, Piaget and Bulgari’s expensive watches.
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Some of them, the most expensive Rolex and some from other wristwatch brands:
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234
ROLEX: Gents 18kr vintage Rolex chronograph wristwatch; silver/white dial w/ black sticks & Arabics; 36.10mm round case; Black stitched crocodile strap (tang); Serial 66658 (1936); professionally restored.
$23000 – $26500

235
ROLEX: Gents 18ky vintage Rolex Oyster chronograph wristwatch; Monochrome motif; gold dial w/ luminous sticks & Arabics, 3 gold sub-dials; 35.1mm round case; Brown stitched Alligator strap (tang); 17 jewel Rolex Genève mechanical winding mvmt; Case 4048; Serial 58105 (1935). Note: Professionally restored.
$54000 – $58000

236
ROLEX: Gents st.steel & 18kr & 18ky vintage Rolex Oyster chronograph wristwatch; rose gold bezel, yellow gold crown; white dial w/ black sticks & Arabics; 34.6mm round case; Brown stitched Alligator strap (tang); 17 jewel Rolex Genève mechanical winding mvmt; Case 3668; Serial 146583 (1940). Note: Professionally restored.
$60000 – $63500

237
ROLEX: Gents 18ky vintage Rolex O.P. “Monoblocco” chronograph wristwatch; aka “Prisoner Watch”; domed plastic crystal; black dial w/ rose tri-sticks & Arabic numerals; gold hands; polished bezel; 35mm round case; dk brown alligator strap (tang); Model 3525; 17 jewel Rolex mechanical winding mvmt; Serial 380223 (1945).
$75000 – $87500

248A
WATCH: Gents st.steel Ulysse Nardin San Marco GMT wristwatch; black dial w/ luminous Arabic numerals; syn saph crystal; date at 3 position; dual-time at 11 position; 37mm round case; Black stitched leather band w/ tang buckle; Automatic mvmt; Model 203-22; Serial No 978.
$1500 – $2000

250
WATCH: Gents st.steel Blancpain Leman chronograph flyback wristwatch; white dial w/ white sub-dials (3); syn saph crystal; date at 6 position; 38.2mm round case; brown alligator strap w/ deployant buckle; Automatic mvmt; Model 2185-1127-53B; Serial No 294.
$4000 – $5200

251
WATCH: Gents 14kw Piaget Gouverneur Automatique chronograph wristwatch; light blue dial w/ matching sub-dials (3), Arabics; syn saph crystal; date at 6 position; 34.2mm round case; black alligator strap w/ 18kw Piaget tang buckle; Automatic mvmt; Model 12978; Serial 810797.
$4500 – $5800

253
WATCH: Gents 18kw Patek Philippe Annular Calendar wristwatch; black dial w/ silver Roman numerals; date at 6 position; 3 black sub-dials; syn saph crystal front & back; 36.95mm round case; black alligator band w/ 18kw deployant buckle; Model 5035G; 35 jewel Patek Philippe automatic mvmt, Cal. 315/198, Serial 3059777.
$12500 – $15600

254
WATCH: Gents 18ky Audemars Piguet Huitieme chronograph wristwatch; crème colored dial & sub-dials (3); date at 3 position; gold hands; 40.4mm round case; dkBrown alligator strap w/ 18ky AP double deployant clasp; Automatic mvmt; Serial C54966.
$6000 – $8000

258
WATCH: Gents st.steel IWC Portuguese chronograph wristwatch; silver dial w/ rose gold markers; 40.9mm round case; stitched brown alligator strap w/ tang buckle; Automatic mvmt; Model IW3714-01; Serial 2697455.
$3000 – $4000

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WATCH: Gents 18kt rose gold Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Duo wristwatch; Night/Day dials; brown crocodile strap w/ 18kr deployant buckle; Mechanical, winding mvmt; Case 270.2.54; Serial 1961500.
$4000 – $5100

Metropolitan Ballroom
New York Sheraton Hotel & Towers
811 Seventh Avenue
New York City, NY 10019

The auction was conducted by:
´Gaston & Sheehan Auctioneers

[Source: CanadaEast]

Filed under: Audemars Piguet, Audemars Piguet Watches, Bernand Madoff, Blancpain, Blancpain Watch, Blancpain Watches, IWC, IWC Watch, IWC Watches, Jaeger Lecoultre, Jaeger Lecoultre Watch, Jaeger Lecoultre Watches, Luxury, Luxury Watch, luxury watches, Madoff, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Piaget, Piaget Watch, Piaget Watches, Ref., Rolex, Rolex 2009, Rolex Accuracy, Rolex and Sports, Rolex Watc, rolex watches, Timepiece, Ulysse Nardin, Ulysse Nardin Watch, Ulysse Nardin Watches, Watch, Watches, wristwatches

Henry Graves’ Platinum Minute-Repeater – Patek Philippe – wristwatch.

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(Platinum Minute-Repeater – Patek Philippe)
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Henry Graves was an American banker descended from John Graves of Concord, Massachusetts born in March 11, 1868 in Orange (New Jersey) and died March 21, 1953 in New York City. He married Florence Isabel Preston on January 21, 1896.

Born into a prominent banking family, Mr. Graves was a very passionate watch collector; Graves was a patron of Patek Philippe, competing with James Ward Packard, the famed automobile manufacturer, for ownership of the most complicated watch in the world. In 1927, Packard commissioned the world’s most complicated watch but not to be outdone, Henry Graves surpassed his rival in 1933 to become the owner of the most complicated watch ever made, spending 60,000 SF, nearly five times the price paid by Mr. Packard. It took over three years, and the most advanced horological technique, to engineer this truly one-of-a-kind timepiece; only one watch was ever built. Called “the Supercomplication”, this pocket watch was held in the Museum of Time near Chicago, IL for years until it was sold for a record-breaking $11,002,500 to a secretive anonymous bidder at a Sotheby’s auction held in New York City on December 2, 1999. The watch currently resides in the Patek Phillippe Museum in Geneva, Switzerland, and is the most expensive single piece on display.

One of the timepieces commissioned by Henry Graves Jr is the Patek Philippe Platinum Minute-Repeater that was made for Henry Graves, Jr. in 1927 and sold on August 16, 1928. It has been kept in private collection for over 50 years.

The 1927 platinum minute repeater is the second-most important Graves wristwatch ever offered at auction, following the Graves tortoise-shaped minute-repeater sold in an Antiquorum sale in 1989. This magnificent timepiece is a very fine and extremely rare cushion-shaped, minute-repeating, platinum wristwatch. Which estimated price was between $250,000–$ 350,000.

Henry Graves’ wristwatch was of a great significance during the sale. It was the Patek Philippe Henry Graves’ unique platinum minute repeater sold for an impressive $630,000.

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Platinum Minute-Repeater Sold to Henry Graves Jr. Patek Philippe, Genève, No. 198095. Made for Henry Graves Jr. in 1927. Very fine and extremely rare wristwatch. It featured a tonneau-shaped, a minute-repeating system. Platinum wristwatch.

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Filed under: Henry Graves, Henry Graves Patek Philippe, Henry Graves Platinum Minute-Repeater, Luxury, luxury watches, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Timepiece, Watch, Watches, wristwatches

Antiquorum’s Important Collector’s Wristwatches, Pocket Watches and Clocks Auction, June 27th, 2009 at the Mandarin Oriental (Hong Kong)

Antiquorum announced in Geneva, last June 10^th, its upcoming event: the “Important Collector’s Wristwatches, Pocket Watches and Clocks” sale prepared to be celebrated on June 27th, 2009 at the Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong. The auction will feature 479 lots and will bring together a remarkable selection of the finest timepieces by world-renowned watchmakers.

Between the highlights we can find:

Lot 479 / Patek Philippe

Ref. 3974, a 18K yellow gold minute-repeating gentleman’s wristwatch with black dial, perpetual calendar, leap year indications and moon phases, estimated between 2,000,000 and 2,700,000 HKD (300,000 and 400,000 Sfr).

Lot 360 / Patek Philippe

Ref. 3450, an 18K yellow gold wristwatch, made in 1982, with perpetual calendar, moon phases and a red dot for the leap year indication, estimated between 1,350,000 and 1,700,000 HKD (200,000 and 250,000 Sfr).

Lot 110 / Horological Machine No.1″, No. 15, by Busser & Friends

Tourbillon with 7-Day Power-Reserve Maximilian Busser & Friends, “Horological Machine No.1”, Ref. 10.TR41. Made in a limited number, circa 2006. Extremely fine and innovative, oversized, self-winding and manual, water-resistant, 18K pink gold wristwatch in the form of an eight, with four mainspring barrels providing 7-day power-reserve and visible one-minute tourbillon regulator.

Estimate: 400,000 HKD – 550,000 HKD

Lot 272 / Grande and Petite Sonnerie, Minute Repeater – Perpetual Calendar (made in 1997 by Franck Muller)

Caliber 97, Grande et Petite Sonnerie Minute-Repeater, Perpetual Calendar Franck Muller, Geneve, “Grande et Petite Sonnerie, Minute-Repeater – Perpetual Calendar.” Made in 1997. Unique, fine and rare, astronomic, grande et petite sonnerie minute-repeating, platinum and diamond-set wristwatch with retrograde perpetual calendar, equation of time, moon phases and 24 hour display.

Estimate: 1,750,000 HKD – 2,500,000 HKD

Lot 173 / Piaget Diamond & Sapphire Rocaille

Diamond & Sapphire Rocaille Piaget, Ref. 3259. Made in the 1960’s. Extremely fine, rare and elegant, 18K yellow gold, diamond and sapphire-set lady’s bracelet watch with an integral 18K yellow gold, diamond.

Estimate: 60,000 HKD – 87,000 HKD

Lot 290 / Vacheron Constantin Platinum, sapphires and diamonds
Platinum, Sapphires and Diamonds Vacheron & Constantin, movement. Made in 1923. Very fine and rare, sapphire and diamond-set platinum lady’s wristwatch.

Estimate: 55,000 HKD – 85,000 HKD

Lot 379 / Mirror Image Pair “Farewell to the Beloved”

Mirror Image Pair – Farewell to the Beloved Swiss, Geneva. Made for the Chinese market circa 1830, and attributed to the Frères Oltramare. Extremely fine and very rare, mirror-image pair of 18K gold and painted on enamel, pearl-set center seconds, musical, quarterrepeating pocket watches playing music on the hour or at will.

Estimate: 900,000 HKD – 1,200,000 HKD

AUCTION
Saturday June 27, 2009
MANDARIN ORIENTAL HONG KONG
2nd Floor, Victoria & Chater Room, 5 Connaught Road,
Central, Hong Kong
Tel. + 852 2522 0111 Fax + 852 2810 6190
Antiquorum Auctioneers (Hong Kong) Ltd.
Suite 1405, 9 Queen’s Road, Central, Hong Kong
Tel. + 852 25 22 41 68 Fax. + 852 25 22 41 38

Session 1: lots 1 – 110, at 11 a.m.
Session 2: lots 111 – 479, at 2 p.m.

Filed under: Antiquorum Auction, Antiquorum Hong Kong Auction, Luxury, luxury watches, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Piaget, Piaget Watch, Piaget Watches, Ref., Vacheron Constantin, Vacheron Constantin Watches, Watch, Watches, Womens

Patrizzi & Co New York: Important Pocket Watches, Vintage and Modern Wristwatches on June 4, 2009.

Two sessions offer outstanding pocket watches, vintage and modern wristwatch, with NO buyer’s commission and simultaneos Internet bidding.

Gerald Genta (Lot 292) –
Estimate: $ 400,000 – $ 500,000

On June 4 in New York, Patrizzi & Co Auctioneers will present “Important Pocket Watches, Vintage and Modern Wristwatches” comprised of some 290 timepieces of outstanding quality, provenance and rarity. The auction follows two highly successful Patrizzi & Co auctions in Europe — the Davide Blei Vintage Rolex Collection, which was held March 22 in Milan and totaled more than $3.7 million with 114 timepieces, and the April 19 auction in Geneva with sales totaling over $6.7 million with 80% of the 263 lots sold.

Patek Philippe (Lot 196) –
Estimate: $ 80,000 – $ 100,000

Patrizzi & Co was founded last year by Osvaldo Patrizzi with the purpose of bringing transparency at an auction. He also achieved fully integrating online communications with the traditional auction format and, most importantly for Patrizzi & Co’s clients, eliminated fees and simplified the auction process.

Rolex (Lot 291)
Estimate: $ 40,000 – $ 60,000

NO buyer’s commission: This represents the saving to buyers of between 20–25% of the hammer price, which most other major auction houses currently charge.

Vacheron Constantin (Lot 247) – Estimate: $ 3,000 – $ 4,000

Five-year guarantee of authenticity: This guarantee eliminates what is often perceived to be the “risk factor” in buying important pieces via the Internet and includes an accurate and very detailed description of the quality of the piece(s) being purchased.

Patek Philippe (Lot 208) –
Estimate: $ 100,000 to $ 150,000

A choice of catalogs: Clients have a choice of purchasing a special commemorative catalog or a digitally printed color catalog or downloading their own personalized version of the online catalog onto their personal computer or new generation e-Book.

Vacheron Constantin (Lot 249) –
Estimate: $ 1,500 – $ 2,200

Auction
Thursday, 4 June 2009, 10:30 a.m. (lots 1 – 100) and 2 p.m. (lots 101 – 293)
Patrizzi & Co, 595 Madison Avenue, 6th floor, New York

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Filed under: Auction, Audemars Piguet, Audemars Piguet Watches, Important Pocket Watches, luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Complicated Watches, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Patrizzi and Co New York, Rolex, Rolex Movements, Rolex Watch, rolex watches, Vacheron Constantin, Vacheron Constantin Watches, Vintage, Watch, Watches, Womens, wristwatches

Steve McQueen’s former Tag Heuer Monaco, his Scott super Squirrel Bike and a Rolex Submariner will be auctioned during next New York Auction

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(Steve McQueen)

Terrence Steven “Steve” McQueen was born on March 24, 1930 in Beech Grove, Indiana (Marion County). Steve was an American movie actor nicknamed “The King of Cool”.

McQueen is known as the highest paid movie star of the sixties and seventies. He is also known as one of the best actors in film history and his films are considered classics. Even though he participated in 26 movies, some of his greatest films are The Great Escape, The Sand Pebbles (Academy award nomination), Bullitt (exciting car chase), The Getaway, Papillion or Le Mans.

(Steve McQueen Rolex Explorer II (1965))
[Available at Interwatches.com]

The real Steve McQueen, not the one in the movies, wore a Rolex. He wore a Rolex known as the “steve McQueen Rolex”, the Rolex Explorer II, model 1955, with an orange 24hour hand.

(Steve McQueen)

He was an enthusiastic racer of both motorcycles and cars. While he studied acting, he supported himself partly by competing in weekend motorcycle races and bought his first motorcycle with his winnings. He is recognized for performing many of his own aerial tricks, especially the mainstream of the stunt driving during the high-speed chase scene in Bullitt. In addition, McQueen also designed and patented a bucket seat for race cars.

(Steve McQueen riding his Scott super Squirrel Bike )

He found out he had lung cancer, and with only two months to live he and his wife went to Mexico for treatment. At the Mexican clinic, he underwent an agonizing three-month regimen of animal cell injections and was taking over 100 vitamins a day. Still, his body continued to weaken. He had surgery to remove an abdominal tumor and soon after that it was all over for the celebrated actor.

(Patek Philippe Geneve Ref. 1463 – 18K Pink Gold)

McQueen died on November 7, 1980 at age 50, in Juarez, Mexico. An open Bible lay across his chest and Steve McQueen lay in death with a smile on his face. It is said that his body remains in ashes, as he was cremated and scattered over the Pacific Ocean.

(Steve McQueen’s Rolex Submariner Ref 5512 )

Steve McQueen’s TAG Heuer Monaco, his Scott super Squirrel Bike (1929) the historically one he shared with Von Dutch and, last but not least, a Rolex Submariner (Ref 5512) will all be available to buy during next New York Aintiquorum’s Auction.

(Steve McQueens historical Scott Super Squirrel Bike)

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Filed under: Antiquorum Auction, Antiquorum Geneve Auction, Antiquorum New York Auction, luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Rolex, Rolex Submariner, Rolex Watch, rolex watches, Steve McQueen, Steve McQueen Auction, TAG, tag heuer, Watch, Watches, Womens

Impotant Collectors’ Wristwatches, Pocket Watches & Clocks Auction. Geneva – Saturday, May 9th and Sunday, May 10th.

On May 9th and 10th Antiquorum will auction over 300 fine timepieces at the Grand Hotel Kempinski, in Geneva. Previews were held in Shanghai April 26 and 27, Hong Kong April 29 and 30, and Geneva May 7 – 10.

The highlight of the sale is the Patek Philippe Ref. 1436 featuring stainless steel split-seconds chronograph. More than unique, only four examples of this model were produced and only three survived. It is said to be one of the first two watch generation to ever exist. This wristwatch was produced in 1945 and then sold on May 11, 1949. It is the first time ever that this watch will be offered at auction. The pre-sale estimated goes from $ 600,000 to $ 800,000.

The action will also offer a Patek Philippe Tiffany split-seconds wristwatch produced in 1928 and sold on September 23, 1938. This 18K yellow gold wristwatch features a single-button split-seconds chronograph, vertical 30-minute register, constant seconds, and mobile lugs. The pre-sale estimated goes from $ 800,000 to $ 1,200,000.

Between many other significant timepieces, another watch included in the auction is another Patek Philippe Ref. 5016 P that features a unique dial. This watch was originally sold on November 13, 2001. This piece in platinum includes a minute-repeater, one-minute tourbillon regulator, retrograde perpetual calendar and moon phases. This piece is estimated goes from $ 600,000 to 800,000.

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Filed under: Antiquorum Auction, Antiquorum Geneve Auction, Antquorum Auction, luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Watch, Watches, Womens

Joseph Bonanno’s Patek Philippe & Cie, Genève Watch

Joseph Bonanno, Sr. (1905-2002) Joseph Bonanno was born in Castellammare del Golfo, Sicily, Italy, to Salvatore Bonanno and Catarina Bonventre. In 1906, the 26-year-old Salvatore took his young wife and one-year-old son to the United States. At age 26, he became one of the youngest bosses of a crime family, as well as an influential member of the “Commission”, a nation-wide organisation formed in 1931

Bonanno is said to have been one of the models for the character “Vito Corleone” in Mario Puzo’s novel The Godfather. Both Bonanno and Corleone wanted their sons to succeed them, and both allegedly wanted their crime families to stay out of the narcotics rackets (although many of the soldiers and associates of the Bonanno crime family were dealing in drugs, most known was later Boss of family Carmine Galante).

Joseph Bonanno’s Patek Philippe & Cie, Genève was given to Joseph Bonanno Sr. by Charlie “Lucky” Luciano in Palermo, Sicily, in 1957. It’s No. 966280, case No. 302352, Ref. 1516. It was produced in the late 40s. 18K yellow gold wristwatch with a 14K yellow gold brick link bracelet. The watch has been authenticated by Joseph Bonanno’s daughter Catherine Bonanno Genovese, in a document included in the lot.

Joseph Bonanno, Sr. died in Tucson, Arizona on May 12, 2002 at the age of 97, of natural causes.

This watch was sold for $36,000 in the last Antiquorum’s auction in March, 4^th and 5^th in New York.

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Filed under: Antquorum Auction, Audemars Piguet Watches, Joseph Bonanno, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Womens

Patek Philippe Twenty~4®

Patek Philippe Twenty~4® was created thinking about a refined, active woman of today who looks for a watch that shows her style and is to be wear on all occasions. Each model is characterized by perfection in craftsmanship, and curved silhouette of the case.

Each model is recognized by Top Wesselton diamonds on the bezel, the case, and/or the bracelet. The crown of each Twenty~4® is studded with an onyx or a diamond solitaire. The gold collection consists of precious small-size models and pieces of high jewelry. A line of Twenty~4® rings and earrings accompanied the watch’s collection.

Filed under: luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Twenty~4®, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Watch, Watches, Water resistant, Womens

Patek Philippe Grand Complications

Complications in watchmaking has become on of the most important challenges of the designer’s expertise and watchmakers’ skill. At Patek Philippe we master all horological complications and have twice this century built the world’s most complicated portable timepiece. In order to make of this watch a jewel of timeless worth, artistic and skilled watchmakers have worked on this collection.

Filed under: luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Grand Complications, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Watch, Watches, Womens

Patek Philippe Complicated Watches

A ‘complication’ in watchmaking refers to mechanical features that a watch can have apart from telling the time and the date. Patek Philippe follows a tradition in complications that are necessary for everyday situations, such as Annual Calendars, dual time zones and World Time displays.

Filed under: luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Complicated Watches, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Watch, Watches, Water resistant, Womens

Patek Philippe Nautilus

Nautilus collection shows the flattering redesign Patek Philippe‘s elegance and sophistication. The universal shape of a porthole found on virtually all maritime vessels. The original model was the Ref. 3700/1 in steel. Nautilus is defined as a classic elegant sports watch and the original reference is one of the most sought-after timepieces at auction.

Filed under: luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Nautilus, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Watch, Watches, Water resistant, Womens

Patek Philippe Aquanaut

Patek Philippe Aquanaut model fulfills two characteristics at the same time, the elegance and the casual style mixing quality in technical features and the creativity in the original design. The case is underscored by the screw-down crown for extra protection on the wrist of active people. Apart from that, Aquanaut has a modern gestalt with a rounded octagonal shape. The surface structure of the landmark dial reflects the texture of the strap made of a high-tech composite. It is soft, comfortable, resistant and hypoallergenic.

Filed under: luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Aquanaut, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Watch, Watches, Womens

Patek Philippe Gondolo

The Gondolo collection was introduced in 1993 and in this creation Patek Philippe’s shows his inclination for the Art Deco style. The Gondolo shows Patek Philippe’s aim to create watches which make history in the company. The name of the collection arose because of the “Chronometro Gondolo” watches produced by Patek Philippe for Gondolo & Labouriau company.

Filed under: luxury watches, Mens, Patek Philippe, Patek Philippe Gondolo, Patek Philippe Watch, Patek Philippe Watches, Water resistant, Womens