What would you prefer: a luxury mansion by the sea with its own fleet of cars, or one single watch?
While the vast majority of us can't even dream of owning a million dollar watch, there's a whole market for such creations that cost well over seven figures. Of course, for a million you can buy yourself a comfortable mansion with a gorgeous view anywhere in the world, but, on the other hand, for the same amount you can become the owner of a perfect exclusive, whose value will only grow from year to year.
We invite you to take a look at the most expensive watches of our time. The only detail: the list contains copies that have earned their value primarily for their historical value, technical complexity and artistic performance. Therefore, here you will not see products entirely studded with diamonds. We will demonstrate them some other time.
12 Jaeger-LeCoultre Hybris Mechanica Grande Sonnerie
$2,5 MILLION
Jaeger-LeCoultre was founded in 1833 by Antoine LeCoultre. The Hybris Mechanica Grande Sonnerie watch once won the title of "The most complicated watch in the world". The watch uses caliber 182. Hybris Mechanica also includes 1300 components, 26 complications and all this is enclosed in a 44-millimeter 18-carat gold case.
11. A. Lange & Sohne's Grand Complication
$2,6 MILLION
The German company A. Lange & Söhne was founded in 1845. In 2013, the brand introduced another incredibly expensive watch - the Grand Complication, worth $2,6 million. Rose gold case with 50 mm diameter and 867 components.
10. Franck Muller Aeternitas Mega 4
$2,7 MILLION
The Aeternitas Mega 4 Grande Sonnerie Westminster Carillon watch was designed and created by the Swiss watch company Franck Muller. Founded in 1991 in Geneva, the company has endowed its flagship watch with 36 complications and 1483 components, making it the world's most complex wristwatch.
9. Patek Philippe 1953 Heures Universelles Model 2523
$2,9 MILLION
When it comes to creating expensive luxury watches, Patek Philippe & Co. is unmatched. The company was founded in 1839 and can offer the most demanding client a good selection of truly exceptional watches. This Patek Philippe creation is housed in an 18-carat gold case and gives you the ability to keep track of the time in several different time zones at once, while the enameled dial shows a map of North America.
8. Patek Philippe 1895/1927 Yellow Gold Minute Repeating
$3 MILLION
With a reserve requirement of $600, it became the most expensive watch ever sold at Sotheby's, reaching $000 million. As part of the Henry Graves collection, the watch can be set to any date up to 2,994, despite being made in 1895.
7. Blancpain Le Brassus Tourbillon Carrousel
$3,8 MILLION
Gravity is the worst enemy of mechanical watches. And watchmakers all over the world use various methods to reduce its negative effect on movement in watches. Tourbillon and carousel are also such methods. What makes Blancpain le Brassus Tourbillon Carrousel especially unique is the fact that it uses both. In fact, Blancpain were the first to use this technique. Founded in 1735, the Swatch Group-owned company has earned the respect and admiration of its peers precisely for innovations like this. The watch has a 44,6 mm case and consists of 379 parts.
6. Patek Philippe 1939 Platinum World Time
$4 MILLION
One of the most mysterious watches in the world, whose history of creation is still shrouded in a lot of secrets. All we know is that the watch was sold in 2002 at an Antiquorum auction for $4,026 million. Experts suggest that, most likely, this watch was released in a single copy.
5. Louis Moinet "Meteoris"
$4,6 MILLION
Technically, the Meteoris is a 4-piece chronograph set that comes with a home mini planetarium and sold for $4,599 million. But given its uniqueness and construction made from precious materials, we felt that it deserved a place in this ranking.
By joining forces with Luc Labenne, Louis Moinet created a watch not only incorporating real pieces from the moon, but also from a Mars meteorite and from an asteroid.
4. Breguet & Fils, Paris, no. 2667 Precision
$4,7 MILLION
Another member of the Swatch Group team is the Breguet brand. The Swiss company was founded in 1775 by Abraham-Louis Breguet. Their most expensive creation is an 18-carat gold pocket watch, which was sold for only 1814 francs back in 5000. Now the price is NO. 2667 Precision is approaching $5 million.
3. Patek Philippe Caliber 89 Pocket Watch
5 MILLION DOLLARS
Produced in 1989 for the company's 150th anniversary, the Caliber 89 Pocket Watch remains the most complex pocket watch in the world, with 33 complications and 1728 parts. The weight of the watch was a solid 900 grams, and a total of about 9 years were spent on their creation. In addition to a wide variety of functions, Caliber 89 Pocket Watch even allows you to measure the ambient temperature.
In 2017, a new attempt was made to auction off the most complex watch in the world, but, unfortunately, it was not successful. The Caliber 89 never found a new owner, although experts predicted a cost of at least $7,7 million.
2. Patek Philippe 1943 Watch
5,5 MILLION DOLLARS
The vintage watch was made in 1943 and can proudly bear the title of the most expensive wristwatch in the world. Case 1943 Watch Ref. 1527 is made of 18-carat gold, and the dial is made of matte silver, the diameter is 37 mm. Additional watch options are a chronograph, a perpetual calendar and beautifully displayed moon phases. The watch reached its record price at Christie's auction held in Geneva in 2010.
1. Patek Philippe Henry Graves Supercomplication
$24 MILLION
In 1933, New York banker and watch collector Henry Graves the Younger commissioned Patek Philippe to make the most complicated watch in the world, which was to win him a "gentlemen's duel" with his acquaintance James Ward Packard, also a renowned watch collector.
They worked on the design of the watch for three years, and it took another five years to implement it. Supercomplication have 24 "hourly complications" (functions other than time measurement), including an infinite calendar, moon phase tracking, sidereal time, power reserve, and a sky map above Graves' New York apartment.
In 1999, an unknown buyer paid as much as 11 million for this rarest creation. At that time, this was already a record amount for watches sold at auction. However, 15 years later, in 2014, Sotheby's put the watch up for sale again, and Supercomplication broke its own record and retained its place as the most expensive watch in the world, earning $24 million.
