When you are crazy about watches and you like to have it all, you are walking down a slippery slope. This impressive collection that includes grail watches from Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Richard Mille, F.P. Journe, Hublot, Rolex, IWC and Panerai, also happens to include watches from other brands like Urwerk, Gerald Genta, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Franck Muller, Breitling and even Bell & Ross and Seiko amongst others. A very close friend who has welcomed us in his life like we've known each other since childhood and a man with a soft spot for Audemars Piguet and Patek Philippe, he has put together a very impressive watch collection with no less than 60+ incredible watches in a very short amount of time. All the way from that vintage Orient Multi-Year Calendar gifted to him by his father as his first watch, to the vintage family heirloom Patek Philippe that was given to him by his wife, to his first Audemars Piguet Royal Oak in stainless steel ref. 15202ST and his original Royal Oak Offshore ref. 25721ST a.k.a 'The Beast', this collector understands substance and who's who in the horological world.
With an elegant watch winder cabinet full of some of his most precious timepieces, a few Venlo watch briefcases and more than two dozen watches just sitting on top of their boxes on the floor, our friend and watch collector greeted us with the biggest smile as we were getting ready to play with his most precious toys. As we sipped a glass of Johnnie Walker Blue Label, the watches became one with us.
With a wide variety of references from Patek Philippe, limited edition watches from Audemars Piguet, unique pieces from brands like Hublot and highly coveted watches from other major brands, below, we are highlighting some of our favorite pieces along with some of the most special watches in this collection:
Patek Philippe Nautilus 40th Anniversary Chronograph ref. 5976G in 18K white gold.
Patek Philippe 175th Anniversary Chronograph ref. 5975R-001 in 18K rose gold.
Patek Philippe Nautilus Chronograph ref. 5980/1A in stainless steel and 5980R/1R in 18K rose gold.
Patek Philippe Calatrava Pilot Travel Time ref. 5524G-001 in 18K white gold.
Patek Philippe Regulator ref. 5235G in 18K white gold.
IWC Big Pilot Le Petit Prince in 18K red gold.
Urwerk 103.07 Targa in 18K rose gold.
Gerald Genta Retrograde Jump Hour in 18K yellow gold.
Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Power Reserve Bronzo PAM 507.
Richard Mille Rm 028 Diver Brown PVD Titanium.
Hublot Big Bang King Power Mexico Black Ceramic.
Hublot F1 King Power Austin Grand Prix.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph Tourbillon.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph ref. 26703ST
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph 44 mm ref. 26402CB.OO.A010CA.01
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Michael Schumacher ref. 26568RM.OO.A004CA.01 in 18K rose gold limited to 500 pieces.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Rubens Barrichello II ref. 26078OR.OO.D001VS.01 in 18K rose gold limited to 500 pieces.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Juan Pablo Montoya ref. 26030RO.00.D001IN.01 in 18K rose gold limited to 500 pieces.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore 'Gentleman's Driver' ref. 26175ST.OO.D003CU.01
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Rubber Clad in 18K pink gold ref. 25940OK.OO.D002CA.02
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Pride of Argentina in titanium with stainless steel bezel ref. 26365IS.OO.D305CR.01 limited to 100 pieces.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Arnold Schwarzenegger The Legacy reference 26378IO.OO.A001KE.01
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore 'The Beast' Original First Series ref. 25721ST.OO.1000ST.01
Audemars Piguet Millenary Chronograph in 18K rose gold ref. 26145OR.OO.D093CR.01
Note: The images below are in the same order as the list.
And as expected from a watch collector of this caliber, there were some interesting pieces from the rest of the brands that make his watch collection. A little bit of everything for every occasion as he likes to see it.
And just as all things come to an end, our memorable visit to document this collection came to an end with a celebratory wrist shot of two Royal Oak Offshores a.k.a 'The Beast' from the first 1,000 pieces ever made.
In sum, when money is no object, you can own anything you want; however, it takes refined taste and horological knowledge for someone to curate a watch collection like the one we have here. A well balanced and powerful collection that will stand the test of time. Considering that a watch collection is a journey and not a destination, we probably can expect for our friend to have a couple new watches that were purchased since the last time we visited him.
Thank you for opening your doors to us and for allowing us to document this very special day we will always remember for years to come. Oh, and before we forget, please open those sealed Pateks and start enjoying them.
Until next time!
