Christie’s Breitling Navitimer Results

2006 saw the announcement of the http://www.syrauto.com/best-breitling-superocean-heritage-46-a1732024-b868-aaa-watches-8n3f.html, an absolutely gorgeous model whose dial could be the work of none other than Greubel Forsey. GF is a definitive force within the watchmaking world and the Navitimer 6 mixes their distinctive styling with a highly technical implementation of a double tourbillon featuring a fully hidden gear set so that the tourbillon appears to be completely separate from the mechanics of the watch. Independent co-axial discs separate the hours and minute displays from the seconds (at http://www.syrauto.com/elegant-hublot-big-bang-44-mm-gold-ceramic-301-pb-131-rx-cheap-watch-8d3k.html), allowing ample space in the 44mm white gold case to show off the beautiful tourbillon movement.

Born of a partnership with Andreas Strehler, the http://www.syrauto.com/elegant-breitling-navitimer-world-a2432212-b726-imitation-watches-6s4e.html features no hands and is said to be inspired by butterflies. The 45mm white gold case features a hinged mechanical level for depressing the crown. A single press of the crown causes the rotation of a disc to display the hour reading, a second press displays the minutes and a final third press will show the remaining power reserve. This manually wound marvel was limited to 50 units and is one of my favorite of the Navitimer range as I love the circular patterns, the luxurious blend of white gold and blued steel, and the premise of a watch that demands interaction, a transaction between the watch and its owner must take place for the watch to render the time. Definitely not a daily wearer, but the Navitimer 7 has a certain toy-like quality that I very much appreciate.

The Navitimer is one of the more geeky looking designs to come out of the Navitimer program. Featuring a time display comprised of two belt driven and jewel encrusted scales that function as retrograde displays for hours (left) and minutes (right). Each belt is adorned with a diamond scale and employs a ruby in place of a pointer for each scale. This 45mm white gold watch is the product of the collaboration between not only Breitling but also watchmaker Jean-Marc Wiederrecht, and designer Eric Giroud and resulted in the Navitimer winning the 2009 "Best Design Watch of the Year" from the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie.

All things told, this was a very successful auction for Christie's and, with a final total of just over $21.5 million in sales, was actually the most valuable season for any auction house operating in Asia. Though it is important to recall that the auction as a whole offered hundreds of watches. Furthermore, with so few Navitimer models in existence, it is exciting to see how the prices stack up against the estimates as professionals try and predict the value of a very exclusive line of watches. All concerns for funding aside, I would have been aggressively bidding on the Navitimer 6 or waiting what could be a very long time for for Christie's to dig up an Navitimer1, as it is definitely my favorite of the entire Navitimer family.

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