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IWC Watch Worn by Bradley Cooper at the Oscars® Tops Dazzling Watches Online Sales Highlights

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This February, Sotheby’s offers a spectacular array of amazing vintage and modern watches across two online sales. Highlights include the IWC Big Pilot’s watch that was worn by Bradley Cooper while attending and performing at the 91st Academy Awards® ceremony on February 24 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. Click above to discover more.

AUCTION
IWC ICON: to benefit the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Youth Foundation
22 February 2019 | 04:00 P.M. GMT | Online
Past Auction
Watches Online
19–25 February 2019 | 3:00 PM CET | Geneva

IWC Watch Worn by Bradley Cooper at the Oscars® Tops Dazzling Watches Online Sales Highlights

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    IWC Schaffhausen, Big Pilot, REF IW500923 single piece 5N gold wristwatch with date, power reserve and special engraving, to be worn by Bradley Cooper at the 91st Academy Awards®
    Estimate $20,000 - 30,000

    The Big Pilot’s Watch with a special engraving will be worn by Bradley Cooper while attending and performing at the 91st Academy Awards® ceremony where he is nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Adapted Screenplay. Cooper has been an ambassador for IWC Schaffhausen since 2018.

    The Big Pilot's Watch is one of IWC's most iconic timepieces. The history of Pilot's Watches harkens back to the early days of aviation when pilots needed reliable instruments to carry out celestial navigation in the cockpit. The iconic instrument design is a reminder of that era. The case, case back, and conical crown of this special watch are made from 18-carat 5N gold.

    The highlight of this exclusive timepiece can be found on the case back, which has an engraving of an iconic quote from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's famous novel "The Little Prince" — "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly." It builds a bridge to a good cause that is supported by this auction: IWC will donate its full proceeds to the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Youth Foundation, which will use the funds to support the association Arrimage, which focuses on teaching visually-impaired children how to read drawings in two-dimensional relief through the sense of touch.
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    Audemars Piguet, Royal Oak, REF 25654BA, Yellow Gold Perpetual Calendar Wristwatch with Moon Phases and Bracelet, circa 1990
    Estimate 35,000-55,000 CHF

    The Royal Oak revolutionised the industry and created a new category: "stainless steel sports watches". The novelty, designed by Gérald Genta, coincided with the tendency for less ostentatious watches as the focus had shifted towards understatement and quality. The Royal Oak was an all-purpose watch that was the perfect fit for different occasions ranging from daily use to formal occasions.

    The perpetual calendar is a complication that has very long ties with Audemars Piguet. Since the 1910s, Audemars Piguet have been producing stylized unique perpetual calendar watches that were highly differentiated from those that were made from other leading Swiss brands. As the popularity of complicated wristwatches increased, in 1955 Audemars Piguet produced the world’s first perpetual calendar wristwatch that would feature a leap year indication.
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    Rolex, Submariner, REF 16613, Stainless Steel and Yellow Gold Wristwatch with Date and Bracelet, circa 1991
    Estimate 8,000-12,000 CHF

    Interestingly, the dial of this particular lot shows signs of colour change as the original royal blue dial has taken on a slight purple hue. As such, this might be a process that continues over time.
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    Jaeger-LeCoultre, Grand Revéil, REF 180.1.99, Yellow Gold Perpetual Calendar Wristwatch with Moon Phases, Alarm, 24-hour and Year Indication, circa 1989
    Estimate 6,000-8,000 CHF

    Jaeger-LeCoultre is famous for producing alarm watches ever since it launched the Memovox model in 1950. “Memovox reminds, notifies and wakes up” read the tag line used in an advertisement from back then. Being a very utilitarian watch, the design was kept clean and simple.

    After the Quartz Crisis, Jaeger-LeCoultre developed a new alarm watch in combination with the complication of a perpetual calendar. The result is the present Grand Revéil model released in 1989 and cased exclusively in precious metal.
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    Roger Dubuis, La Monégasque, Limited Edition Pink Gold Chronograph Wristwatch , circa 2011
    Estimate 10,000-15,000 CHF

    The Monégasque collection was unveiled by Roger Dubuis in 2011. While the first pieces were presented at SIHH in Geneva, the collection was fully launched later that year in the Principality of Monaco, the place after which it was named. Encompassing eight models with different complications, the collection drew inspiration from the luxurious casinos that are found in this famous city on the French Riviera. For the present lot this connection is most visible when looking at the dial. Its black inlay with vivid red Arabic numerals clearly resembles a roulette wheel.
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    Rolex, Daytona, Ref 116520, Stainless Steel Chronograph Wristwatch With Bracelet, circa 2002
    Estimate 15,000-20,000 CHF

    The Rolex Daytona Cosmograph reference 116520 was the first Daytona to be powered by Rolex's first in-house chronograph movement, the caliber 4130. This watch was produced from 2000 until 2016 when the cerachrom-bezel Daytona, reference 116500LN was introduced.
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