Sotheby's December 2008 Watch Sale Racks Up Impressive Results

While much has been made of the global economic turmoil and its effects upon the habits of luxury buyers, the results of Sotheby's December 2008 auction indicate that there is plenty of enthusiasm remaining for exceptional watches.  Indeed, the December 18th sale set the second highest result ever attained in a watch auction at Sotheby's London.

As expected, timepieces from Patek Philippe Watches were a major player in the final results.  A Patek Philippe Ref. 5102G "Celestial" watch realized a sales price of ￡103,250, a result that exceeded the low estimate by ￡20,000.  A reference 3448 perpetual calendar from the celebrated Geneva manufacture sold for ￡64,850, while a rare "Senza Luna" variant of the same model reached ￡61,250.

Another lot which soared to nearly the highest point of its pre-sale estimate, was the remarkable white gold "Millenium" watch from George Daniels.  It achieved a sales price of ￡79,250.

After the sale, Alex Barter, Director and Deputy Worldwide Head of Sotheby's Watches Department said, "We are thrilled with the results of today's auction, which achieved a total well in excess of its pre-sale low estimate of ￡1.1 million and represents the second highest total achieved for a Watches Sale ever at Sotheby's London."

For the 2008 year, Sotheby's watch sales achieved a worldwide total of $52.9 million.  A series of Sotheby's auctions late in the year contributed strongly to the impressive final result.  Among these were October auctions in Hong Kong and New York that brought in $6.1 million, and $4.1 million, and a Geneva sale in November that concluded with a result of $5.8 million.