On One Condition...

I’ve often pondered, what is it exactly that determines the relative value of a collectible? I often get asked for advice on the relative investment value of a watch, and what to look out for when buying or selling. For me it boils down to the three cardinal C’s: Condition, condition, condition.

Take the Rolex Submariner Ref 6204 as an example. The watch was a milestone model for Rolex, being the first ‘Sub’, and the father of all subsequent Submariner models.

A recent study carried out by The Watch Investor showed the selling prices at auction for this particular model over the last decade or so. There were some interesting results.

A brand new Submariner cost USD150 back in 1954. The average auction price between 2004 and 2018 was found to be USD31,212 – which is quite high, even when adjusted for inflation.

But, to be fair, that’s a bit like saying the average depth of the ocean is 12,000ft. The devil is in the details.

One or two of the Ref. 6204’s in that study sample sold for well below USD10,000, and one or two sold for over USD70,000. That’s a substantial price difference between one seemingly identical watch and the next.

Why the huge disparity? In a word: condition. A Ref. 6204 in the original box, locked in a vault for 50 years, with all authentic parts and papers intact would be the Holy Grail, and worth the most, by a long way.

Of course – those kinds of watches are scarcer than a hole-in-one or hen’s teeth. Most vintage watches have been worn for years on the wrist, and taken their fair share of bumps and knocks in the journey of life. How then can a collector rate the desirability of a watch’s condition?

When it comes to the value of a vintage watch, possibly the most important consideration is the condition of the dial. A faded dial (with patina) may seem a bad thing but in fact, the reverse is true. Serious collectors will pay more for a gorgeous “tropical” patina than a non-faded dial.

Early watches often used radium as luminescence, which caused interesting dial patterns over time. What’s more, even a cracked dial can be valuable (collectors call it “spider”).

That said that, it’s important that the overall condition of the watch matches the dial – otherwise it might point to the fact that the dial, or other parts, were replaced. Every detail matters. Every mechanical watch needs some love, and regular looking after, but too much polishing wears down the lugs and pushers, and detracts from the value again.

Even the most seemingly insignificant details can impact the investment value. The style of hour hand, retouched markers, the crown emblem, or even a handset or bezel insert can have a huge impact on the watch’s value – because a seasoned collector will spot these inconsistencies.

The renewed interest in watch collecting over the last decade was at least partly fuelled by record-breaking auction prices achieved on a few rare and special watches: for instance the Patek Philippe Henry Graves Jr. “Supercomplication” (pictured), which sold at Sotheby’s for a staggering USD24 million in 2014.

But even the more everyday variety of vintage watch has become far more valuable too – provided a collector knows what they’re looking for when investing.

I’ve seen trends come and go. Particular models become popular for a while, for one reason or another, and then fade to relative obscurity again. There will always be uncertainties, risk and speculation, but there is a huge difference in the value of one piece compared to the next, even if the models seem otherwise identical – it all comes down to the condition.

A Dance with Destiny

The Poetic Astronomy timepieces from Van Cleef & Arpels are a constellation of auspicious offerings – and insight into the maison’s horological savoir-faire

The night sky has spellbound humankind throughout our history. A source of wonder, the celestial dance has been gazed upon with purpose since ancient times, with the stars used as a guide by navigators to safely traverse land and sea, to mark religious observances, and even interpreted in order to map out our own personal destinies.

The latter, governed by the study of astrology, is particularly captivating. The mystical concept – of been born under a constellation ‘sign’, with one’s fate written and silently governed by the cosmos – is thought provoking (whether one gives credence to its accuracy or otherwise).

This nucleus of mystery and wonder is ideal inspiration for Van Cleef & Arpels, though – a maison ever fascinated by the poetry of time and the pulse of nature. The astrological theme has been a significant for the maison since it first created a series of lucky medals in the 1950s.

In its latest homage to the celestial, VC&A has unveiled the Lady Arpels Zodiac Lumineux – a star-studded feminine collection that commands the attention usually reserved for the sky itself.

There are 12 limited edition designs in this horology line-up, with unique designs each dedicated to a respective Western Zodiac sign. The collection joins the masculine Midnight Zodiac Lumineux watches, which Van Cleef & Arpels introduced at the 2018 edition of Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie Genève (SIHH).

The case and movement are equal for the 12 Lady Arpels Zodiac pieces, which are 38mm in diameter and each harbour a self winding mechanism with 40 hour power reserve. The finishing touch is a beautiful alligator strap that has a white gold buckle strap, frosted with diamonds. It is upon glitter blue enamel dials where one beholds the unique touch: translucent enamel beads, shaped by hand and patterned to represent the distant points of light that symbolise the constellations of Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces.

Precious stones vary with the respective ‘sign’. For instance, the depiction of Leo glistens with yellow gold, yellow sapphires, blue sapphire, spessartite garnets, and yellow enamel with golden foil, while Taurus is characterised using white gold, diamonds, blue sapphire and translucent green enamel.

To bring each twinkling outline to life, the maison illuminates the constellations using a time-honoured craft: an 18 th century technique called piezoelectricity, which causes an electric charge resulting from pressure and latent heat.

A variation on the mechanism was developed exclusively for Van Cleef & Arpels, it reveals, and a variant of the illumination was first developed back in 2016 for the Midnight Nuit Lumineuse watch.

‘The module incorporates a piezoceramic blade whose vibration ‒ under the effect of the watch’s movement ‒ enables electrical energy to be generated mechanically.

This energy is then used to supply the LEDs: at the press of a pusher [found at the 8 o’clock mark], they backlight the dial’s translucent enamel beads for about three seconds.’

‘A blend of inventiveness and fantasy, our creations interpret the measurement of time as an invitation to imagine, wander and revel in happiness,’ the company says.

In Van Cleef & Arpels’ universe, the destiny driven Lady Arpels Zodiac Lumineux is a fine representation of its savoir-faire; a horological ode to the heavens. For this decorated Swiss maison, once again the stars have aligned.

Our creations interpret the measurement of time as an invitation to imagine, wander and revel in happiness

TARIQ MALIK