Elvis Presley’s Omega Constellation Watch Sells for a World Record Price

Antiquorum’s auction of “Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces, Part 2”, held on June 12th in New York, totaled $4,437,225 resulting in a combined spring total of $9,073,713. The collection of 269 outstanding timepieces sold nearly 80% by lot and 116% by value. Strong international participation came from countries such as China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Canada, Germany, Switzerland and the United States.

The highlight of the sale was the much anticipated Omega mens watch that formerly belonged to the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll, Elvis Presley [lot 192]. The bids for the highly sought-after timepiece quickly escalated from $10,000 to an incredible $52,500, over five times its pre-sale estimate and a world record for the reference.

“We are exceptionally pleased with the result for Elvis Presley’s Omega Constellation in today’s sale. Antiquorum is proud to add to its growing list of world records for timepieces with important provenance that includes Gandhi’s Zenith pocket watch, Steve McQueen’s Rolex and Einstein’s Longines,” said Evan Zimmermann, President & CEO, Antiquorum.

The top lot by value was the exceptional Patek Philippe Ref. 5016 [lot 269], a tourbillon minute repeater with custom grey dial. Two phone bidders enthusiastically vied for the rare timepiece and it ultimately sold to a Chinese phone bidder for an impressive $542,500.

Additional examples of Patek Philippe timepieces also sold remarkably well. Notably, the Patek Philippe Ref. 3974 in yellow gold, a minute-repeating perpetual calendar [lot 268], brought an astounding $380,500. Furthermore, discontinued Patek Philippes achieved noteworthy prices in the June auction, including Ref. 5885, Ref. 5098, the “Gondolo,” and the Ref. 5036.

Several other brands were well-represented in the sale. Lange and Soehne achieved an impressive result for its “Pour le Merite” in yellow gold [lot 267],selling for a fantastic $188,500; while spirited bidding for the Ulysse Nardin “Trilogy of Time” [lot 146], resulted in an exceptional price of $164,500, twice its low estimate.

“We were impressed by the remarkable results for today’s sale. The diverse interests of the global market resulted in outstanding prices for complicated mens watches from multiple brands including Lange and Soehne, Patek Philippe, Jaeger – LeCoultre and Ulysse Nardin,” said Michael Friedman, Horological Diretctor, Antiquorum USA.

Antiquorum looks forward to its next auction on June 23rd in Hong Kong, which will feature a fantastic collection of Patek Philippe wristwatches as well as an impressive selection of rare Rolex diving watches.