This $3.5 Million Rolex Just Set an Auction Record
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This must be the most expensive cheese knife ever sold. Over the weekend at the Monaco Legend Group auctions, a sharp yellow blade meant for dicing up Gruyères and Comtés, with the phrase “It’s a Good Watch” printed on it, hammered for $3.5 million. Oh, and it also happened to come with a one-of-12 Rolex chronograph that was never made available to the public. The sale price set a record for both cheese cutters and this particular sought-after Rolex model.
The Rolex 4113 is no stranger to breaking auction records. In 2011, it became the first Rolex ever to cross the million-dollar mark. So what makes it so special? For starters, it’s incredibly rare. Rolex only made 12 of these watches in the 1940s, and they were never sold publicly. These pieces were originally designed for aviation but, according to Monaco Legend Group, race car drivers adopted them as well. Instead of selling them, Rolex gave them to members of various racing teams, making them even more exclusive and attractive eight decades later. Another feather in this model’s cap is that it’s the only split-seconds chronograph Rolex ever made. (A split-seconds chrono, or rattrapante, is a feature that allows the wearer to time intervals, like a lap function on a stopwatch.)
About that cheese knife: This particular 4113 was last owned by the beloved collector Auro Montanari, who writes books under the pen name John Goldberger. This exact watch was seen on the cover of his book 100 Superlative Rolex Watches. In a 2013 Hodinkee video, Goldberger used a knife to pop open the watch’s caseback to the delight and alarm of viewers. “Did he just open up the caseback of his million-dollar-plus Rolex 4113 with his cheese knife?” someone commented. That’s now a $3 million-plus Rolex, dude.
Some other notable sales
Patek Philippe Split-Seconds Chronograph, once worn by Amelia Earhart! ($1,914,000)
You read that right! Not lost to the Bermuda Triangle is this extremely rare Patek Philippe. Similar to the Rolex above, Patek Philippe made very few of these split-seconds chronographs with just a single pusher. But, obviously, the headline here is that Earheart stewarded the watch for some time. The story goes that the watch’s original owner, Harry Gordon Selfridge (yes, of the department store) was friends with Earheart and traded her this piece in exchange for the Longines she wore during her solo flights across the Atlantic.
Rolex Daytona “Paul Newman Lemon” (871,000 euros; roughly $928,076)
What’s cooler than a Rolex Daytona Paul Newman? How about one with a yellow dial and yellow-gold case known as the Lemon? (I prefer the Italians’ nickname for it: limoncino.) Bonus provenance for my fashionheads out there: The watch comes from Renato Della Valle, who was CEO of Giorgio Armani from 1975 to 1978, according to Monaco Legend Group.
Cartier Helm ($380,805)
This watch is known as the Gouvernail, French for “rudder.” I’m in on the nautical theme, but my eyes see the helm of a pirate ship instead. No matter what the results of this Rorschach test, this is an incredibly cool Cartier and more proof that no one makes more distinctive and enchanting shapes than the Parisian jeweler.
Piaget Polo ($49,863)
This is the peak of what a Piaget Polo can be. Those gadroons are great for adding dimension, but they’re even better when they’re filled up with diamonds like troughs for the ultraglam!
Patek Philippe Calatrava “Train” ($117,750)
Choo choo! All aboard the PP rare handicraft express.
Rolex GMT Master ($27,700)
Hard-to-find cooler patination than the tiny blazes erupting from beneath the hour markers on this GMT.
Gérald Genta with mother-of-pearl dial ($13,850)
I just need you all to see this “Asymétrique” Genta with a mother-of-pearl dial. Because tilting a watch on its axis wasn’t kooky enough.
Cartier Grand Carrè Coins Rondi ($66,463)
Another super rare (but less funky) Cartier piece went up for sale in Monaco this weekend. While it looks slightly like a Tank that got steamrolled, the square Grand Carrè is a very uncommon sight. The watch was a gift to F.J. Heraty, an officer and instructor at West Point, from his then new father-in-law. According to the inscription, Heraty received the watch for Christmas in 1927 from an S.A. Megeath. A newspaper clipping from that same year shows that Heraty married Virginia Megeath, the eldest daughter of Mr. Samuel A. Megeath.
Originally Appeared on GQ
