It’s rare to see more than one watch selling for over $1 million in a week, never mind seeing six sell for over that price at one time. Last weekend we saw not one, not two but five amazing watches sell for over $1 million in one evening. These watches were all sold at auctions held at the Phillips auction house.
One of these auctions was a huge auction dedicated to the Rolex Daytona at which four watches sold for over $1 million. Such a top quality luxury watch collection would absolutely be expected to reach high amounts at auction. But even for such luxury, it’s still surprising to see so many go for over seven figures.
The Daytona Ultimatum (which almost sounds like a blockbuster Hollywood movie) was held from the 10-12th of May in Geneva. This was held alongside another big sale – The Geneva Watch Auction SEVEN which also had some incredibly impressive sales figures. Today we’ll have a look at which amazing watches sold for over $1 million last weekend.
The “Daytona Ultimatum”
The Daytona Ultimatum opened up to public viewing on the 10th of May and the event appears to have undoubtedly captured the attention of luxury watch lovers around the world. Phillips had thirty-two amazing watches up for sale on the weekend and these were some of the rarest Daytona models on the market. It was certainly expected that watches up in this auction would end up selling for incredibly high prices due to the rarity of these models. Although very few would have expected to have seen such a large final total.
The event ended up being put together in part due to the record breaking sale of a Daytona watch last year. A Paul Newman Rolex Cosmograph Daytona sold in autumn last year for a record breaking $17.7 million at a Phillips auction. The Daytona Ultimatum managed to raise $22,182,281 – making an average sale price of $693,196 across all of the lots on sale over the weekend. Let’s take a look at the five amazing watches which sold for over $1 million at this event.
5. Rolex Daytona: The Oyster Sotto – $1,662,333
The Oyster Sotto (Oyster Underneath in English) was one of the most amazing watches on sale at this auction. This sought after watch boasted a Paul Newman dial with less than 20 examples of this watch have ever appeared and very few have ever been sold at auction. This watch is very similar to the watch which sold for $17 million in autumn 2017 and went for an impressive $1.6 million at this auction.
4. Elvis’ OMEGA Watch – $1,812,318
When it comes to watch collectors, Elvis Presley had quite possibly the most impressive collection of amazing watches of all time. Elvis was often given fantastic watches, the most well known of which is likely the iconic Hamilton watch he was given as a gift early in his career. This particular diamond studded watch was given to Elvis by RCA records to commemorate his achievement of selling 75 million records around the world. The story of this watch is intriguing – as Elvis handed this watch to his uncle for free because his uncle told him he liked it, but it has now become the most expensive OMEGA watch ever sold.
3. Rolex Daytona: The Arabian Knight – $1,932,306
This one-of-a-kind watch appears to be part of the Rolex brand’s ongoing relationship with the Arab states. They have been known to create amazing watches for states in the gulf featuring unusual customised features which you generally would not see in their watches. This device is the only one to date which has been seen to include Arabian-Indic numerals in place of their traditional hour markers. This watch, although it was known that it existed, had never appeared at auction before and had only ever been written about.
2. Rolex Daytona: The Neanderthal – $3,012,198
This watch was first launched in 1965 and its name comes from the oversized features you can see on the watch. It is known for being the first “Cosmograph” watch, featuring screwed-down chronograph pushers which was important for improving its water resistance. The watch was incredibly unique for Relex, featuring a colour scheme never been seen in their timepieces. This unique timepiece clearly captured the imagination of watch collectors, selling for $3 million!
1. Rolex Cosmograph: The Unicorn – $5,936,9076
This top-selling lot from this collection of amazing watches is now the second most expensive Rolex watch of all time. This timepiece is the only Daytona to ever be created from white gold, making it a true one-of-a-kind watch. Other Daytona’s are all made from stainless steel or yellow gold, making this a must have for Rolex collectors. The watch appears to have been a one-off commissioned watch, meaning it is unlikely that we will ever see anything like it a again. The decision to sell this watch at auction will also do a lot of good as the proceeds from the sale are going to Children Action, a Swiss charity who helps improve the lives of children worldwide.
Aurel Bacs, who organised this sale said, “It’s been a tremendous honour offering ‘The Unicorn’ on behalf of John Goldberger, which achieved one of the largest charitable contributions ever in our industry.” He added that The Unicorn “achieved the second highest price ever for a Rolex wristwatch. We are thrilled with this historic result and philanthropic gesture, and delighted by the lasting benefits the sale of this watch will provide to so many children.”
Conclusion
When it comes to watch auctions, there is always the potential to see incredible sales at incredible prices. But, despite the number of amazing watches on sale, to see five watches sell for over $1 million is quite unbelievable. On top of that, one sale reached a record-breaking sale value for an OMEGA watch and another became the second highest price ever for a Rolex wristwatch. To top it all off, almost $6 million is going to help improve the lives of children worldwide. What an incredible weekend last weekend really was!
Images: Phillips
