IN SEARCH OF THE HOLY WATCH GRAIL

A sophisticated collector of timepieces should blend the finest new watches with a few hard-to-find items that can only rise in value, opines our columnist. ANDREW ROBERTS

For us watch enthusiasts there is a different kind of ‘grail’ that we are in search of. It’s certainly not ‘holy’ in the traditional sense and certainly not the one associated with Hollywood blockbuster films but our ‘grail’ is a watch. Although it isn’t just any kind of watch. To be a grail it must be just out of reach and usually entail some financial hardship to really feel right. This applies equally to whether you are buying your first year-of-birth Omega for £2000 or a Patek for 100 times that.

My first ‘grail’ was a Rolex Daytona. In fact it was disappointingly easy to come by – in the window of an excellent local jeweller in a market town in the south of England. It is virtually unheard of to see a Daytona in a shop window. I won’t tell you which because it’s one of the best kept secrets in the world of Rolex connoisseurs. I bought it from them at list price and got myself a bargain. In fact I wore it on and off for a year and sold it at a decent profit.

But there was something missing about that experience. It was all too easy and I soon realized that Daytonas (reference 116520) are actually easy to find. Anyone with the budget can get one; the so-called seven year waiting list may be true at some authorised dealers, but there are many available elsewhere.

So what should the so-called true enthusiast be aiming for? The biggest challenge by far is in the vintage or rare pieces market – it can be tricky but if you know what you’re looking for and do the research, a whole new world of watch collecting will open to you. This is where the ‘grail’ really exists. It’s no coincidence that the most valuable watches in the world are in the vintage market. But the vintage market does vary around the world. ‘The rising economies of the Middle East, Russia and China are at the point still where the demand is only for new watches – usually the flashier the better,’ says the highly regarded expert James Dowling of ukwatches.com.

‘ It’s no surprise that the vintage market is most established in countries with a strong sense of ‘style’ such as Italy and Japan. France and the UK have also seen strong recent demand for vintage watches and the rising prices only serve to confirm this,’ continues Dowling.

Markets that Dowling tips future growth in vintage watch demand include Hong Kong and Brazil where demand and appreciation for vintage pieces are on the rise. As with any luxury item, a layer of experienced purchasers emerges with a more sophisticated take on luxury items.

A few months ago, the first Rolex to be auctioned for over £1 million was handled by Christies in Geneva. It was a 1942 split seconds Chronograph (reference 4113) – in fact a very early predecessor of the current Daytona. But only 12 were ever made and were gifts to famous racing drivers and team owners during the early 1940s. The piece commanded such an impressive price because only eight are known to be in existence, and because of its immaculate story.

The ultimate holy grail watch for many collectors is a Patek Philippe. No other brand holds its value so well. However the vintage Patek market is a world of its own. Over the last few decades more Pateks than any other watch brand have sold for over £1 million. The most expensive was the yellow gold pocket watch Supercomplication created in 1932. It was created for New York banker Henry Graves Jr and reached US $11 million at auction in 1999.

More recently, the historically important 1943 Patek (reference 1527) was auctioned in Geneva and reached $5.7m. This could be the ultimate ‘holy grail’ watch in many ways – its existence wasn’t even known of until 20 years ago. It was built as a one-off and became the forerunner for generations of complicated wristwatches.

According to the charismatic watch expert Danny Pizzigoni, founder of London boutique Watch Club, there are some brilliant opportunities out there right now.

‘The popular Patek (reference 5130) World Time is performing extremely well as demand will always be far greater than supply. This watch is currently trading at double the retail price and any Patek 5970s will also be a good bet for the future,’ says Pizzigoni.

Critical to any future value of a grail piece is its condition as well as the demand for it. That means it shouldn’t be over polished or had the dial reconditioned – this can have a serious impact on the value. It must also come with all original documentation and boxes.

‘Early Rolex technical models are rising sharply, for example the 1940s Moonphases which are rare. More recent examples and more affordable are cream dial Explorer IIs or even a first series ‘Fat 4’ Rolex Submariner with green bezel could be a good future investment,’ continues Pizzigoni. ‘Likewise with Rail dial Sea Dwellers and Cern dial Milgauss 1019 also stand a very good chance of becoming much more valuable in the future,’ he says.

A watch with a good story and documentation can also outperform a much rarer piece. My current favourite is a limited edition of the recently discontinued Rolex Sea Dweller (reference 16600) . The exotically named ‘Polizia di Stato Sommozzatori’ was specially produced for the diving corps of the Italian state police and has an octopus on the dial. Only 78 of these pieces have ever been produced and of these, 28 were individually named for the diver it was presented to. Pizzigoni has one, retailing at £70,000. I would wager a Patek that its price will only head upwards.

Andrew Roberts is a collector and connoisseur of the finest gentlemen's accoutrements