S
otheby’s New York is pleased to present our summer sale of Fine Watches, offering a wide breadth of collectable timepieces and clocks by renowned brands such as Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Rolex and more.
When the ref. 3940 was launched in 1985, the market was shaken by this innovative new look that was very different in appearance to the earlier Patek Philippe perpetual calendars. Bold and elegant, the first series ref. 3940 (as it is now known) featured sunken registers that have aged with time, as well as a signature font that is much more ‘vintage’ in appearance than later series. This early example is beautifully preserved and making a rare watch even rarer, the first series dial is in German. We are pleased to offer the present lot with an Extract from the Archives confirming the original date of sale on August 24th, 1987.
Produced as a limited edition, Reference 5100 was launched in 2000 to celebrate the new millennium. Its flared rectangular shape is inspired by the 1950s Reference 2554, the 'Manta Ray'. After the production of the Reference 5100 was complete, Patek Philippe destroyed all necessary tools and materials used to produce the Reference so that it can never be recreated exactly.
What makes this watch a modern take on its predecessor, apart from its size, is also the employment of a power reserve for the amazing duration of 10 days. Conveniently for the wearer of the watch, the mechanism will keep running up to ten days straight without requiring the daily or perhaps 36 hours winding necessary for ordinary timepieces. Reference 5100 is Patek Philippe's first model featuring a ten-day power reserve.
Patek Philippe made a total of 3,000 pieces of reference 5100. Of these, 1,500 examples were made in yellow gold, 750 in pink gold, 450 in white gold and 300 in platinum.
Heavily inspired by the racing world, the present watch was made honoring the Brazilian Formula One race car champion Rubens Barrichello. Limited to 257 pieces only, the unique design draws on the bezel, crown and chronograph push buttons. The ceramic bezel mimics the ventilations on a disc brake while the buttons are a reminiscent of cooling ducts.
The “Mega-Tapisserie” dial enhances the watch’s sporty aesthetics.
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The Royal Oak Offshore case was introduced in 1993 as a sportier and more robust vision of the classic Royal Oak design by Gerald Genta. The present lot is with an extremely generous diameter of 44mm.
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Audemars Piguet Perpetual Calendar is fitted to a sport case. The legacy of Audemars Piguet’s perpetual calendar wristwatch began in 1955 when they had produced the world’s first ever perpetual calendar wristwatch with the essential leap year indication. In 1983, the firm combined its renowned perpetual calendar movement with its highly popular Royal Oak collection. The Royal Oak Offshore perpetual calendar was introduced in the 1990s.
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Unique subsidiary dial for moon phases
Sub dials doing double duty: Audemars Piguet plays with form and function, combining the chronograph and calendar subsidiary dials.
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Reference 26262OK.00.1150CA.01 Royal Oak Offshore 'Restivo' in pink gold, limited to 25 pieces. The present lot is numbered 13/25.
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