A $5 Million Clock, $1 Million Rolex, and My 12 Other Favorite Watches From Geneva’s Massive Auctions

Tariffs, modern prizes, and…emails! This was one of the strangest auction seasons I can remember in some time. In Geneva this weekend, the major auction houses—Christie’s, Phillips, Sotheby’s, and Antiquorum—held their big May auctions, one of the most significant events on the calendar for vintage watches. But the weirdness started a few weeks ago in Monaco.

Spring auctions are always a helpful data point in determining the health of the watch market, but with tariff news swinging around like a sledgehammer, auction houses treated these results as a weathervane for the whole global economy. The auction house Monaco Legend Group described watches as “a safe haven in uncertain times” and immune “to economic volatility.” (This has long been a talking point for auction house leaders.)

There was more good news this weekend as a half-dozen watches passed the one-million mark. Even better is that these notable prices came from a large variety of brands, from F.P. Journe, A. Lange & Söhne, and Richard Mille to Cartier and Rolex. Meanwhile, a younger contingent of collectors is starting to make itself heard. Christie’s reported that 28% of bidders were new clients and 37% of its clients were Gen Z or millennials.

These new bidders didn’t necessarily change the makeup of the results, though. Unique, vintage watches still delivered the best results. That’s despite the auction houses trotting out two of the most desirable modern watches in the world. A Rolex Daytona “Le Mans” ($254,856) and one of Simon Brette’s Chronomètre Artisans ($241,749), both released within the last couple of years, were sold for fine but not extraordinary numbers.

But outside of economic headwinds and multi-million dollar results, there are plenty of less talked-about gems. These are my personal favorites and most interesting results from this weekend.

Rolex Daytona unique piece by Asprey ref. 116500 (Sold for 175,000 Swiss Francs; $208,085)

Rolex hardly ever does custom pieces like this for its retailers anymore, but clearly it’s willing to make exceptions if the idea rocks hard enough. This one-of-one Daytona was produced just a few years ago for Asprey, which is known for this signature shade of purple.

Cartier Le Cirque Animalier ‘Tiger’ ref. 3062K (Sold for 57,150 Swiss francs; $67,966)

Before Audemars Piguet made precise sculptures of Marvel superheroes or KAWS Companions, Cartier was apparently producing cute little gem-set tigers reposing atop a watch. The jeweler made only 50 of these.

Audemars Piguet bracelet watch (Sold for 95,250 Swiss francs; $113,271)

This looks like an amazing ice-themed level of Super Smash Bros. that I need on my wrist.

Patek Philippe ref. 2526 (Sold for 95,250 Swiss francs; $113,231)

This Patek 2526 is like a time-traveler. The watch was made in the early ‘50s (sold in 1955), but with its pitch-black dial and slinky gold bracelet, it looks totally modern. I’m infatuated with this bracelet, which is called the lobster because its design mirrors the scalloped shell of the crustacean. The bracelet was made by Ponti Gennari, who was known for making special designs for Patek.

F.P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain (Sold for 1,633,000 Swiss francs; $1,941,819)

This watch has a lot of technically impressive complications, including that tourbillon hanging out at 6 o’clock. However, what I really can’t get over is the dial, a unique ruby cut specifically to fit FPJ’s design. Only 20 of these were made, which makes the near-$2-million result totally unsurprising.

Omega Speedmaster Mark II “Racing” Dial ref. 145.014 (Sold for 2,250 Swiss francs; $2,675)

The Mark II variant of the Speedmaster brings in a more interesting shape, stretching out the Moonwatch’s round case at the top and bottom. I’m really just a sucker for this cheerfully bright, and very busy, dial with its many shades of orange, from tangerine to magma. (The barrel-scraping price is no doubt due to the fact that the movement needs an “overhaul,” according to Antiquorum.)

Audemars Piguet Quantieme Perpetual ref. 25786BA (Sold for 378,000 Swiss francs; $449,521)

An absolutely ridiculous watch covered with enough rubies to make it worthy of a heist.

F.P. Journe X THA for Breguet Pendule Sympathique N°1 (Sold for 5,505,000 Swiss francs; $6,546,821)

At over $6 million, this was the biggest sale from over the weekend. In 1991, Breguet collaborated with watchmaker Francois-Paul Journe to make a watch inspired by one originally made by Abraham Louis Breguet in the 1700s. The piece resulted in this clock, which also comes with a wrist/pocketwatch that you pop in to have it set and wound overnight. Insane!

However, the day before the auction, F.P. Journe sent out an email that read, “Neither Montres Journe SA nor Francois-Paul Journe will consider any requests for repairs to the Sympathique No. 1. The winning bidder will have to contact the Breguet company.” What made this even stranger is that F.P. Journe ended up being the one willing to shell out more than $6 million for this clock to put inside the brand’s museum.

Omega Speedmaster “Moonwatch” Apollo 11th 40th Anniversary model in platinum ref. 311.90.42.30.01.001 (Sold for 63,000 Swiss francs; $74,912)

Omega finds endless ways to spice up its signature Speedmaster. This piece, made for the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, is an extremely luxurious take on the tool watch. The case is made out of platinum and the sundial at 9 o’clock is made of a small circle of 18-k gold engraved with the design from the Apollo 11 mission patch.

Rolex Daytona “Paul Newman John Player Special” ref. 6264 (Sold for 1,008,000 Swiss francs; $1,198,759)

This watch was one of the headliners of the auction weekend, and it is pure collector catnip. It’s one of the rarest Rolex Daytonas ever produced. This one has it all, including the black-and-gold combination known as the John Player Special after the iconic F1 liveries on the Lotus cars sponsored by the cigar company and a Paul Newman-style dial with art-deco style numerals. Only two or three of these specific Daytonas were made in 14-k gold, according to Christie’s.

Cartier Cigarette Box (Sold for 27,940 Swiss francs; $33,229)

I was delighted to see all the various Cartier knick-knacks on sale this weekend. There were match holders with matching mechanical pencils, brooches, and highly ornate clocks to bid on. My favorite was this cigarette box with a basket of fruits made from diamonds, emeralds, and rubies on the front.

Rolex ref. 3236 (Sold for 68,580 Swiss francs; $81,559)

Rolex doesn’t just make tool watches for diving to the bottom of the ocean or ascending Everest. The watchmaker can also supply gorgeous bracelet watches to make jaws hang at your next gala. This design was made in collaboration with the jeweler Georges Lenfant.

Patek Philippe ref. 565 (Sold for 355,600 Swiss francs; $422,848)

The 565 was released in 1938 and signaled a sportier take on Patek’s ultra-classic watches. This model is slightly larger and has a waterproof case. Naturally, the piece also comes in stainless steel. This is a really pretty example of the watch with a really cool Milanese bracelet from bracelet gods Gay Frères.

(Sold for 35,560; $42,284)

Driver’s watches are a fun subcategory of timepieces often designed with an aperture at the bottom of the case to make them easy to read if you have your hands on the wheel. This piece from Parmigiani Fleurier is a prime example of the form. The watchmaker worked with Bugatti and designed the piece to look like an engine block.