Rare Patek Philippe That Belonged to Henry Graves Jr. Fetches $1,340,804 at Auction

By Adrienne Faurote May 12, 2014

Today in Geneva, Christie’s kicked off the Spring auction season with its Important Watches sale. The top lot from the 435-piece auction was Lot 101, a rare Patek Philippe timepiece which belonged to Henry Graves Jr.

This platinum cushion-shaped minute repeating wristwatch, which was made for Graves in 1927, brought in US$1,340,804. Pictured above, it features a silvered matte dial, applied platinum Breguet numerals and subsidiary seconds. The caseback is engraved with Graves’ coat-of-arms and motto Esse Quam Videri (Latin for ‘to be rather than to seem’). The case, dial and movement are signed Patek, Philippe & Co., Geneva, Switzerland.

Graves, an American banker and haute horlogerie collector, commissioned some of the most outstanding Patek Philippe models in the manufacture’s history.

In total, today’s Important Watches auction realized sales of US$26,508,102. The results were a nearly 10% increase compared with last year’s Spring sale, according to John Reardon and Sam Hines, International Co-Heads of the Watch Department at Christie’s. Rounding out the top lots were another Patek Philippe model, as well as a Rolex.

This 18K gold Rolex features a unique decorative cloisonné enamel dial and star numerals. It sold for US$1,220,632 – a new world record for any Rolex sold at auction.

This 18K gold double-dial Sky Moon Tourbillon Ref. 5002 by Patek Philippe boasts twelve complications, including a minute repeater, tourbillon, perpetual calendar, retrograde date, moon age, sidereal time, sky chart and moon orbit display. It sold for US$1,020,346.