Paris was the venue for Bonhams latest watch auction held on 7 February which featured 56 lots. Notable amongst the lots was a rare vintage Patek Philippe Calatrava Ref: 96 wristwatch originally retailed by Hausmann & Co. The jewellery and watchmaking firm of Hausmann & Co was established in Rome in 1794.
Rare vintage Patek Philippe Calatrava Ref: 96 stainless-steel wristwatch from circa 1935 with a dual signed dial. Sold for €61,360 including buyer’s premium. © Photo courtesy of Bonhams.
The Calatrava Ref: 96 was made in circa 1935 and features a manual wind movement with a stainless-steel case. The dial which shows aging and patina is dual signed Patek Philippe & Co Geneve and Hausmann & Co. Patek Philippe dual signed dials with famed retailers have proved consistently popular with collectors. The watch is sized at 31mm in diameter. Bonhams’ catalogued some interesting history about the Calatrava Ref: 96 model. The watch was launched in 1932, the same year that the Stern Family became the owners of Patek Philippe. Design influence for the Calatrava came from the Bauhaus, Art Deco, and Modernism styles. The Ref: 96 was produced for four decades from 1932 to 1973. During this time it is estimated that only around 95 timepieces were made in stainless-steel making the Bonhams lot a rarer piece. Estimated at €10,000 to €15,000 the watch sold for an excellent €61,360 including buyer’s premium. (Approximately £52,380).
1991 limited edition Paris Boutique version of the famed Cartier Crash wristwatch. Sold for €152,800 including buyer’s premium. © Photo courtesy of Bonhams.
No Paris watch auction would be complete if it did not offer a Cartier watch. Bonhams came up trumps by offering a Cartier Crash Paris Boutique limited edition 18K gold manual wind wristwatch. Sized at 24mm x 39mm the watch was released in 1991 with only 400 pieces made. The unique highly distinctive case shape and dial have made this watch very collectable. The 1991 limited edition is based on the original Cartier Crash watch created in London during the 1960s. As Bonhams’ noted the first Cartier Crash models were sold exclusively at the Cartier London Boutique in 1967. Production of these London watches was in very small numbers as directed by Jean-Jacques Cartier. For this 1991 limited edition watch the estimate was placed at €120,000 – €180,000. The watch sold for €152,800 including buyer’s premium. (Approximately £130,400).
By way of direct comparison Bonhams’ Fine Watches sale held in New Bond Street, London on 13 December 2023 featured another Cartier Crash 1991 Paris Boutique limited edition watch. This watch sold for a higher price of £216,300 including buyer’s premium. The watch came with its Cartier box and original purchase receipt.
Audemars Piguet, Quantième Perpétuel with perpetual calendar and moon phase complications from circa 1980. Sold for €14,080 including buyer’s premium. © Photo courtesy of Bonhams.
Modern era vintage watches were well represented in the auction by an Audemars Piguet, Quantième Perpétuel, reference 25548BA. The 18K gold cased watch has a Cal.2120/2 automatic movement with a perpetual calendar and moon phase complications. Dated to circa 1980, the watch is sized at 36mm in diameter. The importance of this watch model is well documented by Bonhams’ who note that the first iteration of the watch was launched in 1978, during the quartz crisis, and featured an ultra-thin calibre 2120/2800 automatic self-winding perpetual calendar movement. As Bonhams record; ‘The design mastermind behind the original 5548 Perpetual Quantieme was Jacqueline Dimier’. The estimate for the watch was set at €10,000 – €15,000 with the watch selling for €14,080 including buyer’s premium. (Approximately £12,000).
F. P. Journe, Octa Auto Lune, platinum automatic calendar wristwatch with power reserve and moon phase from circa 2008. Sold for €51,200 including buyer’s premium. © Photo courtesy of Bonhams.
A fine example of more contemporary watchmaking included an F. P. Journe, Octa Auto Lune, platinum automatic calendar wristwatch with power reserve indicator and moon phase from circa 2008. The calibre 1300.3 features an impressive 120 hours of power reserve. The watch is sized at 40mm in diameter. Estimated at €45,000 – €65,000 the watch sold for €51,200 including buyer’s premium. (Approximately £43,700).
Rare Jaeger-LeCoultre luminous world globe desk clock made in circa 1930. Sold for €8,960 including buyer’s premium. © Photo courtesy of Bonhams.
For something different that would have suited collectors of both historical and horological items Bonhams’ offered a rare Jaeger-LeCoultre luminous world globe desk clock. Made in circa 1930 the globe has an octagonal base with a chromed-brass cover to the annular dial. The globe’s world map is scaled to 1/65,000,000 and was made by Girard et Barrères Geographers in Paris. The estimate was €5,000 - €8,000 with the globe selling for €8,960 including buyer’s premium. (Approximately £7650).
