GENEVA.- Last night, Sotheby’s Geneva flagship Important Watches Sale has confirmed continued buoyancy in the collectible watch market by grossing 14,982,016 CHF / 19,295,488 USD, the most valuable watch sale of the past 12 years. The standing room only live auction took place at Geneva’s Mandarin Oriental, with a high number of in person bidding, coming from an engaged audience who witnessed several records broken during the session – a reflection of the record number of overall participation in the sale with 1,500 of paddles registered.

The current strong demand for high quality watches was undeniable last December, in New York, where Sotheby’s flagship watch sale became its highest grossing watch sale ever, a short-lived record shattered by Sotheby’s Hong Kong Important Watches Sale just last month.

Alongside its record total, today’s Geneva sale saw record participation from collectors, with each sold lot chased by an average of three or more bidders. The same was true of paddle numbers – or number of registrations to participate in the sale – with more than ten paddles registered per lot on average, nearly twice the number from last month’s historic Hong Kong sale. This further demonstrated a sharpened appetite from collectors globally, resulting in dynamic and sustained bidding patterns, pushing nearly 52 % of all lots sold past their high estimate and 98% selling above their low estimate and higher.

The Shapes of Cartier Part 2 was expected to do well in Geneva, given its enthusiastic reception at Sotheby’s sale in Hong Kong, and it did it not only by selling all its lots, but by achieving more than three times its low estimate, leaving no doubt about the continued engouement for vintage Cartier timepieces. The third part of this exceptional single owner collection will be sold in New York this June.

But with the Shapes of Cartier collection representing just over 10% of the of the sale, the bulk of the strong bidding was spread across over 120 exceptional lots including the very rare and historically important lot 31 A. Lange & Söhne Grande Complication Pink Gold Clock Watch made in 1916 which became the sale’s most valuable lot, fetching 1,587,007 CHF / 2,060,656 USD, after a three minute bidding battle between two bidders on the phone and another in the room – a world record for any of the references from the brand.

Key Highlights from The Shapes of Cartier Collection

Lot 19 – Cartier Driver, a very rare yellow gold triangular prism-form driver’s rear wound wristwatch with gold deployant buckle | Circa 1945-46. Estimate 45,000 - 65,000 CHF, sold for 127,999 CHF / 164,852 USD

Lot 52 – World Record for a Mystery Wristwatch – Cartier Mystère Tortue, an extremely rare and unusual white gold tonneau form rear-wound mystery wristwatch with white gold deployant buckle | Circa 1973. Estimate 40,000 - 60,000 CHF, sold for 255,999 CHF / 329,705 USD.

Lot 95 – Cartier Paris Éclipse Guillotine, retailed by Cartier London, a yellow gold and champlevé enamel Art Deco wristwatch with ‘guillotine’ shutters | Circa 1930-31. Estimate 24,000 - 40,000 CHF, sold for 166,399 CHF / 214,308 USD.

Lot 101 – Cartier, London Tank Cintrée, a very rare yellow gold curved rectangular wristwatch with blue numerals and a gold deployant buckle | Made in 1969-70. Estimate 30,000 - 50,000 CHF, sold for 153,599 CHF / 197,823 USD.

Lot 122 – Cartier, Paris Parallélogramme, a rare yellow gold asymmetrical rectangular wristwatch with gold deployant buckle – one of the earliest versions of the Tank Asymetrique | Circa 1937. Estimate 55,000 - 80,000 CHF, sold for 121,600 CHF / 156,610 USD.

Other Highlights

Lot 27 – Audemars Piguet, John Shaeffer, Reference 25798OR, a very rare and limited-edition pink gold minute repeating wristwatch with jumping hours | Circa 1995. Estimate 90,000 - 140,000 CHF, sold for 179,199 CHF / 230,793 USD.

Lot 55 – Ulysse Nardin, The Trilogy of Time, a set of three limited edition platinum celestial wristwatches | Circa 2009. Estimate 55,000 - 110,000 CHF, sold for 179,199 CHF / 230,793 USD.

Lot 63 – Most valuable Black Tie Piaget – Piaget – 'Andy Warhol Black Tie', Reference 15102 | A yellow gold wristwatch with date | Circa 1973. Estimate 150,000 - 300,000 CHF, sold for 166,399 CHF / 214,308 USD.

Lot 69 – World Record for the Reference 6239 in Yellow Gold – Rolex, Daytona 'Paul Newman', Reference 6239, a yellow gold chronograph wristwatch | Circa 1967. Estimate 300,000 - 600,000 CHF sold for 1,151,999 CHF / 1,483,672 USD.

Lot 113 – F.P. Journe Centigraphe Souverain, a platinum chronograph wristwatch with 100th of a second, 20 seconds and 10-minute registers | Circa 2009. Estimate 200,000 - 300,000 CHF sold for 422,399 CHF / 544,013 USD.