Over the weekend, the ninth edition of the Only Watch charity auction took place. The biennial auction, which benefits research for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, was held for the first time at the Palexpo Geneva this year.
With Christie’s conducting the auction, the event raised CHF30 million (S$44.42 million) from the sale of 53 unique timepieces from 54 leading watch brands. This brings the total amount raised by the nine editions of Only Watch to over CHF100 million. In the latest edition, five timepieces smashed the CHF1 million mark. (Note that there is no additional buyer’s premium for this auction.) Here are the five priciest pieces.
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02: FFC Blue by F.P. Journe x Francis Ford Coppola — CHF4.5 million
One of the most intriguing watches in the Only Watch 2021 catalogue, the FFC Blue features an automaton hand that indicates the hours with mobile fingers that appear or disappear instantaneously. (Three o’clock, for instance, is indicated by the three central fingers.) The 42mm case is made of tantalum, and is exclusively developed for Only Watch.
In the press notes for the FFC Blue, renowned watchmaker Francois-Paul Journe explains, “This watch was born in 2012 while having dinner at Francis Ford Coppola’s house in the Napa Valley. He asked me if it could be possible to tell time with a hand in a watch. I replied that the idea was interesting and required thinking about… Once I figured it out, Francis immediately sent the sketches for the finger positions. After seven years of development, I am proud to present the FFC prototype.”
