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Rose Gold F.P. Journe and Vacheron Constantin Watches Headline Ineichen Auction

Zurich-based Ineichen Auctioneers will focus on collectible watches made of rose gold for “La Vie en Rose,” its March 12 auction. More than fifty watches will be on offer, with pieces from Vacheron Constantin, F.P. Journe, Daniel Roth, Cartier, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Audemars Piguet among the auction headliners.

Three pieces in particular are likely to stir the most collector interest: F. P. Journe’s Chronomètre à Résonance Sincere Limited-Edition No. 202-RN and Octa Calendrier Sincere Limited Edition No. 239-Q, and a Vacheron Constantin Malte Openworked Tourbillon.

F. P. Journe Chronomètre à Résonance Sincere Limited Edition No. 202-RN

F.P. Journe Chronomètre à Résonance Sincere Limited-Edition No. 202-RN 

(Estimate: CHF 200,000-300,000)

A limited-edition watch first purchased in 2006, this model features a 40mm by 9.1mm case in rose gold, a black mother-of-pearl dial and silver subdials patterned with Clous de Paris guilloché. It is powered by a thin manual-wound caliber 1499.2 with mainplate and bridges in solid 18-karat rose gold, and twin independent movement coupled with an aerodynamic resonance system. The watch is one of the rarest models in the Chronomètre à Résonance line as only ten pieces were produced.

F. P. Journe Octa Calendrier Sincere Limited Edition No. 239-Q

F.P. Journe Octa Calendrier Sincere Limited-Edition No. 239-Q 

(Estimate: CHF 150,000-200,000)

Also limited to ten pieces, this 2006 model’s rose gold case measures 38mm by 10.6mm. It features a black mother-of-pearl dial with silver subdial decoration in Clous de Paris guilloché, and is one of very few timepieces to include an annual calendar complication, automatic winding and five-day power reserve. Its annual calendar function indicates the date via the large central hand and advances automatically for months with 29, 30 and 31 days.

Soon after its launch, the Octa Calendrier won the Special Jury Award at the prestigious Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève in 2002.

Vacheron Constantin Malte Openworked Tourbillon

Vacheron Constantin Malte Openworked Tourbillon Ref. 30067/000R-8954

(Estimate: CHF 50,000-100,000)

With a rose gold case measuring 36mm x 36mm x 11.80mm, this watch was produced from 2000 to 2011 and features traditional skeletonization with ‘baroque lines’ and a hand-engraved “peacock tail” decorative pattern with meticulous finishing. Another feature is the caliber 1790SQ, which is one of the best traditionally skeletonized tourbillon movements and also Vacheron Constantin’s first in-house tourbillon movement.

In addition to this trio of headliners, these watches from Girard-Perregaux, Cartier and Daniel Roth will likely draw attention from many collectors.

Girard-Perregaux ww.tc Tourbillon Hours of the World

 

Girard-Perregaux ww.tc Tourbillon Hours of the World  

(Estimate: CHF 30,000-40,000)

This piece features the famed Girard-Perregaux three gold bridges, but here they’re visible through the back of the case, non via the dial side. This is meant to echo the design of the original pocket watch movement invented by Constant Girard in 1867 and patented in the US in 1884.  This Reference 99350 is a very rare variation of the design with a rose gold case measures 43mm x 13.15mm, a light cream dial with a world-time complication. Only a few pieces were produced annually from 2005 to 2010.

Cartier Tortue Monopoussoir

 

Cartier Tortue Monopoussoir Mk2 Ref. 2781 

(Estimate: CHF 20,000-30,000)

This watch, one of the first timepieces from the Collection Privée Cartier Paris (CPCP) introduced by Cartier in 1998, is equipped with a rare hand-wound movement, caliber 045 MC, developed by THA Èbauche – a collaborative movement manufacture founded in 1996 by independent watchmakers Vianney Halter, Denis Flageollet and François-Paul Journe.

This model features the caliber 045MC Mk2 version, which uses only monolithic steel springs (except for the fixing spring of the minute counter). There is no additional bridge. Purchased in 2004, the case of this piece is 18-karat rose gold, measuring 43mm x 34mm (with lugs) x 10mm.

Collectors can register pre-bids and participate in the auction live via the Ineichen Auctioneers website. Bids can also be made online at invaluable.com; liveactionauction.com or by phone via +41 44 298 11 44.

Source: Ineichen Auctioneers

 

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The Watches

Zenith Revives 1969 Defy “Bank Vault”

After releasing a series of watches during recent years that pay tribute to its historical El Primero chronograph models from the 1960s and 1970s, Zenith this week launches a revival model to celebrate its Defy collection circa 1969.

The new Zenith Defy A3642 recalls the original Zenith debut of the same name, a watch fans quickly dubbed the “bank vault” or “safe deposit box” due to its thick 37mm octagonal case and fourteen-sided bezel.

The new Zenith Defy A3642 revives a 1969 Defy nicknamed the ‘bank vault” due to its rugged construction.

The revival model retains all the details that made the original unusual at the time. These details include a grey dial with a gradient effect and applied square hour markers with horizontal grooves meant to “convey a sense of perpetual motion,” according to Zenith.

The new watch also features the same sword-shaped hour and minute hands and the same paddle-shaped seconds hand design Zenith used on many of its watches of that era. Today, SuperLuminova provides luminosity on the hands rather than Tritium, with Zenith matching the grey luminous color.

A Zenith sales brochure from 1969.

Zenith claims that use of the new luminous material, plus the use of a sapphire crystal and a clear caseback, are the only cosmetic differences between the original model and the revival edition. Even the ladder-style steel bracelet on the revival echoes the original Gay Frères ladder bracelet.

Technically however the Defy A3642 is decidedly modern. Zenith’s excellent automatic Elite 670 movement, operating at a frequency of 4 Hz (28,800 VpH) powers the new model.

Zenith currently offers a Defy collection, which is still characterized by sportiness and geometric cases. Zenith ensures a water resistance of 300 meters, echoing the original model, as ensured by a screw-down crown.

Zenith will produce the special Revival Defy A3642 in a limited edition of 250 pieces. Price: $7,000.

 

Specifications: Zenith Defy Revival A3642

(Reference: 03.A3642.670/75.M3642, a limited edition of 250 pieces.)

Case: 37mm octagonal steel case with iconic 14-sided bezel. Water resistant to 300 meters.

Movement: Zenith Elite 670, automatic, with frequency of 28,800 VpH (4 Hz) and 50-hour power reserve. New star-shaped oscillating weight with satin finishes.

Dial: Gradient brown with rhodium-plated and faceted markers and hands, filled with SuperLuminova SLN C1.

Bracelet & Buckle: Stainless steel ladder bracelet.

Price $7,000

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The Watches

Parmigiani Fleurier Unveils La Rose Carrée, an Artisanal Grande Sonnerie

In the late 1990s Michel Parmigiani, founder of Parmigiani Fleurier, acquired a late 19th century grande sonnerie and minute repeater movement created by famed watchmaker Louis-Elisée Piguet.

That complicated movement, which was never encased in a pocket watch, remained on Parmigiani’s to-do list for restoration until earlier this year when Guido Terreni, the company’s newly named CEO, embarked on a project to help the brand celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary.

Terreni and Parmigiani quickly enlisted the Piguet movement as the heart of the project.

The Parmigiani Fleurier La Rose Carrée, a deeply artisanal grand sonnerie.

After nearly a year of painstaking restoration and artisanal craftsmanship, the Fleurier-based watchmaker has released the La Rose Carrée, a 64mm white gold double hunter pocket watch with the fully restored Piguet caliber set within a newly designed case coated in translucent grand feu enamel.

Named after the Rose Carrée or “squared rose” engraved pattern seen on the case and movement, the one-of-a-kind watch Is coated by three or four layers of blue grand feu enamel (applied by artistic enameller Vanessa Lecci) to add depth and rich color to the engraving work.

According to Terreni, the square roses pattern found throughout the watch follows the Golden Spiral, a derivative of the Golden Ratio, which has long been favored by Michel Parmigiani.

One cover opens to reveal the black onyx dial, white gold hands and a small-seconds subdial outlined in white gold. The second cover opens to frame the beautifully engraved movement with a mainplate and the bridges displaying the thematic Rose Carrée pattern.

The grande sonnerie and minute repeater movement, pictured here after restoration, was created at the end of the 19th century by Louis-Elisée Piguet.

 

Notable too is the blue-sapphire-set crown and an unusual square-link chain entirely handcrafted by Swiss traditional chain maker Laurent Jolliet.

For additional detail and a video about La Rose Carrée, check out the Parmigiani Fleurier website.

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Alpina

Alpina Reboots Bumper Movement

Alpina has updated a bygone mechanical caliber design to launch its Startimer Pilot Heritage Manufacture with a ‘bumper’ rotor that pings back and forth, rotating 330 degrees instead of the 360-degree modern standard for automatic movements.

The new Alpina Startimer Pilot Heritage Manufacture, with a movement utilizing a ‘bumper’ oscillating weight.

A version of this type of to-and-fro oscillating ‘bumper’ weight was used in many early automatic Swiss watches starting from the late 1920s into the 1960s and could be found installed into watches from Omega, Universal Genève, Jaeger-LeCoultre–and Alpina.

Alpina made this ‘bumper’ caliber in the 1950s.

The new Caliber AL-709 on this new Alpina watch, which is visible through the clear sapphire caseback, mimics the watchmaker’s own vintage ‘bumper’ movement from the 1950s.

According to Alpina, the two calibers share “the same geometry and the same inspiration.” However, while the vintage version rotates 120°, the new one rotates 330°. In addition, Alpina has replaced the springs used in the vintage designs with more efficient blades.

Alpina has placed its retro-bumper caliber into an existing 42mm steel cushion-shaped case from its Startimer Pilot Heritage collection.

The case nicely combines a circle in a square with rounded edges. A smartly satin-brushed and polished case middle further emphasizes the case’s dual geometry, which to my eye feels more inspired by watches from the 1970s than from those made in the 1950s.

A view of the AL-709 automatic movement, with a ‘bumper’ rotor.

Alpina has built its AL-709 caliber with an extended diameter that reaches to the edge of the round inner caseback, in part to underscore the watch’s Heritage message.

The dial also adds to the vintage look with its 1950s style cues, notably the three matching hands.  Alpina also wisely places the watch’s crown at 4 o’clock, which enhances the case’s cushion profile. The 42mm case size and the sporty red accents add a contemporary edge.

Alpina is limiting the new Startimer Pilot Heritage Manufacture to 188 pieces, each with a brown calfskin strap with off-white topstitching. Price: $2,850.

Specifications: Alpina Startimer Pilot Heritage Manufacture

(Ref. AL-709SR4SH6, Limited edition of 188)

Movement: Automatic AL-709 Manufacture caliber, 38-hour power reserve, 28,800 alt/h.

Case: 42mm by 13.25mm brushed and polished stainless steel, scratch-resistant sapphire crystal, see-through case back, water-resistant to 100 meters.

Dial: Silver color with vertical brushed finishing, black minutes and seconds graduation, silver color indexes and hands with red luminous treatment.

Bracelet: Brown calf leather strap with off-white stitching.

Price: $2,850.

 

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A. Lange & Söhne

F.P. Journe, Vianney Halter, Audemars Piguet Highlight Ineichen Auctions This Weekend

This F. P. Journe Chronomètre à Résonance Ruthenium is just one of the three rare watches made by pioneering independent watchmaker F.P. Journe set to be auctioned this weekend, November 20-21,  by Ineichen Auctioneers in Zurich.

F.P Journe Chronometre a Resonance Ruthenium

The platinum watch, with an estimate between CHF 200,000 and CHF 250,000, was purchased in 2002 and features a solid gold dial with dark grey ruthenium coating and Journe’s famed hand-wound Résonance caliber 1499.3.

Back view of the F.P Journe Chronometre a Resonance Ruthenium.

The auction, titled 17 Shades of Grey, will feature timepieces produced in tantalum, platinum and steel. Other watchmakers with watches in the auction include Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, Breguet, F.P. Journe, Vianney Halter, Konstantin Chaykin, and Urwerk.

After its primary auction of vintage watches and pocket watches, Ineichen will also host a second specialized auction called Alchemy of Gold that features wristwatches in yellow metals.

One highlight in this specialized auction is a set of twin Vianney Halter pieces. These are the Antiqua Yellow Gold and the Antiqua White Gold (each estimated at $53,800 to $107,600) which drew much collector attention when Halter revealed them in 1998.

Vianney Halter Antiqua Perpetual Calendar.

These interpretations of the perpetual calendar allow the wearer to read the hour and minutes, month/ leap year, day of the week and the date via four riveted portholes in order of decreasing diameter.

Other highlights of Alchemy of Gold include watches from Audemars Piguet, A. Lange & Söhne, Patek Philippe, Girard-Perregaux, Tissot, Daniel Roth, and Vacheron Constantin.

Here is a look at a few highlights from the Ineichen Auctioneers auction this weekend.

The F. P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain Ruthenium.

The F. P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain Ruthenium Collection (estimate $107,600 to $215,150) is numbered and limited to 99 pieces. This one features the caliber 1498, the movement that helped the brand make its mark in watchmaking in 1999. No more than 520 Tourbillon Souverain watches were ever produced, and that includes those in the Ruthenium Collection.

The F. P. Journe Chronomètre Souverain de Boulle.

This F. P. Journe Chronomètre Souverain de Boulle (estimate $53,800 to $107,600) is among the rarest versions of this model. At that time, only eight watches were supplied to the authorized Dallas retailer, de Boulle Diamond & Jewelry, in the US in 2007, with two more delivered for owner Denis de Boulle and a director. This piece belonged to the owner.

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Tantalum/Platinum.

The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Ref. 25820TP (estimate $107,600 to $215,150) in platinum and tantalum is the rarest version of this model, which forms part of a limited edition of fifteen pieces. A characteristic feature is its design with a matte non-Tapisserie dial.

Audemars Piguet “Starwheel”

Also from Audemars Piguet is the Ref. 25720 from a collection that featured dials mostly decorated with a guilloché plate. Hand- engraved dials were less common, especially like this one in platinum, ranking this Audemars Piguet Star Wheel Automatic Ref. 25720PT (estimate $10,800 to $21,550) among the most rare of this kind. It was released in a limited edition of only nine pieces, which is indicated at the bottom of the dial (9/9).

A few more highlights:

 

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Minute Repeater, Est. $21,550 to $32,300.

 

Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar (Est. $16,150 to $21,550).
Vacheron Constantin Patrimony Skeleton Chronograph, Est. $10,800 to $21,550.

Check out the Ineichen auctions here.

 

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