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TimeTechTalk.com > Time Tech Talk > Time Talk > Watch News and Reviews > Valuations: Why is This Watch Worth $312,000? |
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TimeTechTalk.com > Time Tech Talk > Time Talk > Watch News and Reviews > Valuations: Why is This Watch Worth $312,000? |
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| Valuations: Why is This Watch Worth $312,000? | Rate Topic |
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| Posted: Mon Oct 18th, 2010 04:57 pm |
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1st Post |
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watchdaddy1 3T WIS 
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 The Patek Philippe 5078P model has what connoisseurs call the "ultimate complication." Key is sound it makes Valuations: Why is This Watch Worth $312,000? by Amy Ma Monday, October 18, 2010 Purists prefer Patek Philippe, says Vanessa Herrera, deputy director for Sotheby's Asia watch department. Everytime the auction house has a Patek in its lot, it is flagged as an auction highlight. For the Oct. 6 Sotheby's watch auction, a Patek Philippe platinum 5078P sold for 2.42 million Hong Kong dollars (US$312,000). It was "a most sought-after piece," says Ms. Herrera. The seemingly simple watch, a new timepiece — not an antique — doesn't seem much at face value, but Ms. Herrera helps us pick apart the details to explain why it is worth every penny. Minute-repeating function: This is the watch's only "complication" — a term used to describe any watch feature that does something other than tell time — but it is considered the "ultimate complication" by connoisseurs. It consists of 342 parts, all hidden in the casing except for a small switch on the outside that activates the function, which reports the time every minute through a coded series of delicate but distinct tones. "It's a callback to the pocket watch," says Ms. Herrera, who adds that a crisp, well-paced and rich-toned "ding" is one of the most difficult things to achieve in watchmaking. Enamel dial: Unlike metal faces, which can tarnish and darken with time and humidity, an enamel dial, produced by baking under extremely high temperatures, behaves much like bone or porcelain — it never ages. But creating a perfect (uncracked) enamel face is another delicate element of the watchmaker's art. 38-millimeter diameter: This Patek Philippe model is an evolution of an older model, which had a smaller face. In addition to looking more substantial, the larger face improves the acoustics of the minute-repeating function as well. Brand: "The Patek Philippe name is to watches what Bordeaux is to wines," says Ms. Herrera. Each watch comes with the assurance that even on the secondhand market, it will retain its value. Every Patek Philippe is handmade and assembled in Geneva and comes stamped with a Geneva Seal — a guarantee that all mechanisms meet the highest standards. Platinum case: Platinum is the hardest of all metals to sculpt, so much so that watchmakers wear out a set of tools for every three pieces of platinum they work with. Traditional design: Classic designs, like this Patek Philippe, are hard to imitate. "When there are a lot of flourishes and flash, it's easier to overlook the details. But for a simple design to be this elegant takes a real aesthetic eye," says Ms. Herrera. Waiting list: "This watch is currently available on the retail market, but you can't just go in and buy it," says Ms. Herrera. The waiting list is long, which only inflates its already hefty price. "Think of it like an Hermès Birkin bag — only VIP customers have a shot at scoring one. Sometimes watches with waiting lists sell for higher than retail prices in an auction simply because it is so hard to purchase one."
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| Posted: Mon Oct 18th, 2010 05:00 pm |
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2nd Post |
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watchdaddy1 3T WIS
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I'M gettin' 2
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| Posted: Mon Oct 18th, 2010 05:25 pm |
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3rd Post |
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Hammerfjord Moderator 
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Somes would find it a bit irritating that a carillon wall-clock ring each quarter, half hour and hour. I remember that we had an old one at home when I was little and after some weeks, we decided to mute it: It was too invadinghammer.gif You can't go to a movie or a party with that
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| Posted: Mon Oct 18th, 2010 05:46 pm |
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4th Post |
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Paladin 3T WIS 
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watchdaddy1 wrote: I'M gettin' 2 I only bought one of these...  Gerald Genta Arena Metasonic - Limited Edition of Ten at $900,000 Each!  Limited Edition of 10 Pieces (MSRP (US$900,000 ea) An alliance of tradition and engineering for the ultimate Grande Sonnerie, the most complicated of its kind in the world for over 15 years The latest evolution of the Arena Grande Sonnerie, the Arena Metasonic raises the exclusive work of Gérald Genta to the realm of perfection. Launched as a wristwatch in 1994 and regularly improved ever since, the noble proprietary complication that was already considered beyond compare further enhances its pedigree by appearing in a revolutionary new case. An original material and unprecedented construction combine to ensure an enchanting chime, embodying progress stemming from in-depth acoustic and vibratory research that simultaneously overturns certain preconceived ideas.  Striking watchesStriking watches are classified into quarter, five-minute and most frequently minute repeater models, and Grande Sonnerie or “grand strike” variations can be triggered up to 35,040 times a year. They strike the hours and quarters automatically or “in passing”, as well as being systematically equipped with the minute repeater which strikes the hours, quarters and minutes on request. The watch then successively chimes the hours on a low-pitched gong, the quarters on two, three or four gongs, and the minutes on a high-pitched gong. Grande Sonnerie watches are a long-established speciality at Gérald Genta. It has introduced a number of exceptionally complex wristwatch models since 1994. With their four hammers and their Westminster chime playing a different tune for each quarter, they represent 15 years of peerless accomplishments and are all the more remarkable in that they are developed on tourbillon movements. The Grande Sonnerie models comprise approximately 850 parts for the hand-wound models, 950 for the self-winding versions, and 1,100 for those equipped with a perpetual calendar. It takes around a year’s work to craft just one such watch, and only 61 in all have emerged from the Gérald Genta workshops since 1994. Connoisseurs, and especially master-watchmakers, unanimously confirm that it is not the accumulation of functions that makes a watch complicated, but instead the intrinsic complexity of the movement to be assembled and cased up.
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| Posted: Mon Oct 18th, 2010 10:43 pm |
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5th Post |
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Nordstrom 3T WIS 
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It must have a 10 year battery!!!
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| Posted: Mon Oct 18th, 2010 11:29 pm |
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6th Post |
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bigrustypig 3T WIS 
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Thanks for this, William. I guess all I can say is that the joy of appreciating the financial value of a Patek is explained best by owning a piece and enjoying it. Prices appreciate quite fast and hold these levels for longer periods of time. 
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| Posted: Thu Oct 21st, 2010 03:33 am |
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7th Post |
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Hammerfjord Moderator
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About Patek and it's magic bells... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puPeEtvqkXU&feature=related
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| Posted: Sat Mar 26th, 2011 02:04 am |
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8th Post |
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afc14284 3T WIS 
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I guess I won't own one anytime soon....
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