WHL
[VC Moderator]
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Would you pay a premium for provenance?
Antiquorum has an auction tomorrow and one of the Vacheron Constantin watches for sale appears to be (or have been) Marlon Brando's watch, a gift from Zsa Zsa Gabor. Its condition makes it look like it worn on the waterfront and lots of other places too:
The estimate range is $3000-$5000. The low end of that seems about right for this vintage in this condition. Assuming the provenance is good, would you pay a premium for this timepiece? If not this one, then for some other celebrity owned watch? ( I would pay up for the watch that VC engraved with Eisenhower's name on the case back)
Tune in tomorrow to see at what price this lot sold..
Bill
This message has been edited by WHL on 2009-09-16 13:12:40
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Would you pay a premium for provenance?
Antiquorum has an auction tomorrow and one of the Vacheron Constantin watches for sale appears to be (or have been) Marlon Brando's watch, a gift from Zsa Zsa Gabor. Its condition makes it look like it worn on the waterfront and lots of other places too: ...
Depends on the previous owner, on the watch, and on the premium, Bill! :)))
This message has been edited by amanico on 2009-09-16 13:56:27
I fully ......
agree... Depends on the previous owner-- eg I would not pay for a watch owned by Brando but for Einstain yes Cheers
Is there any other proof of provenance other than the engraving?
Not sure if just an engraving is enough . I suspect it will not soar like the 5512 from the previous AQ auction Julian
There is none that I know of....
and I would want it were I buying it for reasons other than appreciation of the object in and of itself. One of my favorite VC's (that I owned) was actually engraved on the back by a guy who had put in 25 years at Swingline and was given a gold watch. I c...
Somewhere in there
...there's a joke about how hard it must have been to "keep it together" for all those 25 years at Swingline! Best, Jed
It was not a Patek but a Rolex ref 5512 owned by Steve McQueen
. It had a newer dial put on which is usually the kiss of death for vintage rolex but this particular watch which sells for $5-10K sold for $235K !!! So some people pay a lot for provenance I guess Julian
Not for that one.
But for others I might. I would want more than an engraving as provenance, though. Best, Jed
To an extent
Hi Bill, I'd pay a premium for a watch with its original papers, but no more than the cost of getting a Certificate of Authenticity from VC. This would be enough for me to believe a watch is original. Unless I had some other interest in famous people that...
Hi Dan
I'm with you I too have a few pieces with engraved initials or dedication. And I too wonder about the original owners and what they were like. I especially like the ones given to a son by his parents. That really stirs some thoughts I have a Gruen Curvex ...
I would.
Isn't provenance everything in our world? And in this price range, for that level of Romance, wow.
Hi Bill
I don't doubt the authenticity, but its in awful condition and I would nit pay a premium for it or even offer the minimum. Thee are other Hollywood stars from the past however, that I would definitely think about paying a premium. Best, Joseph
I would not pay a premium...
I would not pay a premium for that watch's provenance. First I'd want more evidence than an engraving to corroborate the watch's history. In addition, I could not think of any movie or tv personalities meant enought to me that I would consider paying a pr...
The results are in!!!
I can hardly believe it, but this watch sold for $18,000, including buyer's premium.Though the consensus of those who posted here seems to be that this watch woldn't be worth more than a similar watch without the engraved case back, there were at least tw...
It did quite well
but keep in mind that the Antiquorum rating was AAA. The discoloration was oxidation which indicated that it had never been polished. The dial was clean, and much of what is seen in those pics are on the crystal. It was one of those that you had to see in...