From the surprising to the sublime and the simply amazing the May Geneva 2026 spring watch auctions had it all. Many of the stunning watches sold over the auction week you will never get to see again as they disappear into private collections. While the very top lots breaking the million mark made headlines, other equally interesting pieces did not get the same limelight. Having attended all the viewings and auctions, resulting in a somewhat spinning head, I thought it would be interesting to profile some of these watches. The selection spans a diversity of styles, periods, and technical specifications. However their common thread is the sheer creativity of watch design and watchmaking skill on display.
Dino & Roberto Falcone ref. 2C
Move over Cartier Crash, how about this Dino & Roberto Falcone take on the asymmetrical scrunched up wristwatch. This incredible piece of design features a probably unique 18k white gold case with enamel dial, jump hours, day and moonphase.
Dino and Roberto Falcone, a Milanese father-and-son duo of watch and casemakers, produced the piece around 1985. Designated reference ‘2C’ the more you look at the watch the more fascinating the various aspects become. The blued hands are of Breguet design but bent at almost broken angles, the crown with a blue sapphire is Cartier Esque, the moonphase aperture incorporates a wave pattern, the numeral font is highly distinctive. Even the jump hour window is askew. As Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo noted about the father and son duo, ‘they produced a small number of highly idiosyncratic, asymmetrical watches. Drawing clear inspiration from Salvador Dalí’s The Persistence of Memory’.
The watch is powered by a manual calibre 7001 movement and is approximately 34mm in diameter presented on a leather strap. Estimated at CHF 60,000–120,000 the watch achieved an exceptional sale price of CHF 889,000, (£840,300), including buyer’s premium at Phillips’ May Geneva Watch Auction: XXIII. What makes this price even more astounding is that Christie’s in November 2013 sold a near identical Dino & Roberto Falcone reference ‘2C’ model in 18k white gold from 1985 for CHF 50,000. That’s quite some upward trajectory in value between 2013 and 2026!
More details at Phillips.
Vianney Halter Deep Space Tourbillon ref. Dst.22
French born watchmaker Vianney Halter stands amongst the select group of first generation modern independents who led the way in the 80s, 90s and early 2000s. This group defined what we now know as the genre of contemporary independent watchmaking. Celebrated watchmakers in this group include Daniel Roth, François-Paul Journe, Philippe Dufour and Dr Roger W. Smith to name a few. Halter established himself as independent in 1984 and has subsequently been recognised with multiple watch industry prizes.
Nor has he stood still as this dramatic and technically sophisticated wristwatch testifies. Known as the Vianney Halter Deep Space Tourbillon reference Dst.22 it has titanium casing. The unique piece, produced in ultra-low numbers to order, features a triple axis tourbillon and is from 2025. In distinctive green it has an in-house manual-winding calibre VH113 and is sized 46 mm in diameter. Christie’s who auctioned the watch said, ‘The watch blends cutting-edge design with astounding technical ingenuity, motivated by Halter’s extraordinary horological talent and inspired by his love of science fiction’. The triple-axis tourbillon rotates every 40 seconds, then completes another rotational cycle every six minutes, and simultaneously gyrates over a 30-minute cycle.
At Christie’s May Geneva Rare Watches sale it realised a solid CHF 304,800, (£288,100), including buyer’s premium. The estimate was set at CHF 150,000 – 300,000.
More details at Christie’s.
Vacheron Constantin ‘Cioccolatone’ ref. 4764
For connoisseurs of vintage Vacheron Constantin the stylish reference 4764 watch can melt hearts and has somewhat appropriately been given the moniker of ‘Cioccolatone’ or Italian for square-shaped chocolate. The wristwatch is a true avant-garde mid-century 50s design icon, embracing post war aesthetics with clean lines, organic shapes, and a focus on functionality blended with sophistication. I greatly enjoyed seeing this piece as shown to me by Alexandre Ghotbi, Deputy Chairman, Watches at Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo’s at their Geneva viewing. In particular, this watch is a very rare version in 18k pink gold boasting a triple calendar, moonphase, and two-tone silvered dial from 1958. Phillips added that the watch was probably one of the best-preserved examples to come onto the market. Further, the case is unpolished along with crisp hallmarks on the underside of the lugs.
Vacheron Constantin introduced the ‘Cioccolatone’ in the early 1950s producing several references using the same case style. This reference – the 4764 – was the most complicated version with just 47 known examples in either yellow or pink gold. Oversized at the time the watch has a 36mm width and 43mm length and is powered by a manual calibre P495 movement. Offered for sale by Phillips at their May Geneva Watch Auction: XXIII the watch made an impressive CHF 635,000, (£599,800), including buyer’s premium. The pre-sale estimate was 250,000–500,000.
More details at Phillips.
Urban Jürgensen ref.6
A lack of commercial success for the Urban Jürgensen reference 6 released in the mid-1990s has turned out to be this wristwatch’s saving grace in today’s collector world. As very few were ever made, rarity is guaranteed. In fact Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo stated about the example they had for their May Geneva sale that ‘this watch is available for the first time in history for public sale’. The slim, smartly styled 18k yellow gold tonneau case is sized 31mm width and 42mm length, perfectly fitting with today’s collector taste for smaller dress style wristwatches. It is powered by a manual winding Frédéric Piguet calibre movement. The dial features a blue lapis lazuli hardstone display, another current collecting trend. But perhaps the crowning ‘pièce de resistance’ for this watch is the maker.
Urban Jürgensen is one of those ‘if you know you know’ watch brands. Stylish, classic and with impeccable horological credentials, the brand can trace its origins all the way back to Copenhagen, Denmark in 1773. It was a successful family business of watchmakers that includes the master watchmaker Urban Jürgensen who made precision marine chronometers and pocket watches in the early 1800s. Like many old watch brands however it went through various ownership changes during the mid-20th century leading up to the quartz crisis. Then in 1979 the brand was revived by the combined talents of Peter Baumberger, Derek Pratt, and Kari Voutilainen, then later also by Dr Helmut Crott. Interestingly a photo of this model reference 6 can be found on the Urban Jürgensen website.
The wristwatch was sold by Phillips at their May Geneva Watch Auction: XXIII sold for a very strong CHF 152,400,(£143,900), including buyer’s premium. The pre-sale estimate was set at a lower range of 40,000–80,000.
More details at Phillips.
Audemars Piguet ‘John Schaeffer’ ref. 25798OR
Personified by Cartier’s famed Tank à Guichets from the late 1920s, jump hour watches with apertures only instead of dials have recently enjoyed great collector interest. So much so that Cartier has reintroduced a modern version. Audemars Piguet have also joined this club with the newly released Neo Frame Jumping Hour calibre 7122. This model takes its design heritage clues from a 1920s Audemars Piguet watch design. However for vintage connoisseurs with very deep pockets there is another option. Why not buy the original! For example a Cartier Tank à Guichets in 18k white gold from circa 1931 was sold by Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo in May 2024 for Swiss Franc 406,400 (£383,800), including buyer’s premium.
A slightly less expensive option but none the less very appealing is the above illustrated ‘neo-vintage’ period Audemars Piguet ‘John Schaeffer’ reference 25798OR from circa 1995. This is a very rare piece and made as a limited edition in 18k pink gold with a minute repeater, jumping hours, manual winding movement. Sized at 33 mm diameter. Sotheby’s showcased this watch in their May Geneva sale catalogue. They commented that the watch was ‘part of one of the most intriguing and underappreciated series of complicated wristwatches produced by Audemars Piguet during the 1990s’. It is named in recognition of Audemars Piguet special commission in the early 20th century to create a minute repeating wristwatch for the American industrialist John Wallace Schaeffer.
Sotheby’s posted a pre-sale estimate of CHF 90,000 – 140,000 for their Important Watches auction in Geneva this May. The watch ultimately sold for CHF 179,199, (£169,200), including buyer’s premium.
More details at Sotheby’s.
Patek Philippe ref. 3295
Finally, I wanted to conclude with a watch that is more of a jewellery item rather than a piece imbued with horological credentials per se. However this Patek Philippe reference 3295, 18k gold and cultured pearl-set bracelet watch designed by Gilbert Albert in 1961 is as equally stunning in terms of its design and craft level. It was produced at the very start of the 60s, a decade that along with the 70s would see a period of intense design expression in watchmaking.
This illustrated Patek Philippe also has a famed designer in Gilbert Albert. Born in Geneva in 1930 he went on to study at the École des Arts Industriels. In 1955 Albert joined Patek Philippe and rose to become head designer at the prestigious maison. During his time at Patek Philippe he created some stunning watch designs including the asymmetrical ‘Ricochet’ series. He then moved to work with Omega and eventually opened his own workshop in Geneva in 1962. Over his career he has been awarded numerous prizes and awards.
About the design of this particular bracelet watch Christie’s noted ‘The present bracelet watch is a superb example of contemporary aesthetics from the early 1960s. It embodies the era’s fascination with textured gold surfaces, both stylized and organic, and is enhanced by cultured pearls arranged in a seemingly spontaneous, almost natural pattern’. A similar piece was sold by Christie’s in May 2004 and is now included in the Patek Philippe Museum collection.
Collectors very much appreciated the piece at Christie’s May Geneva Rare Watches sale. The bracelet watch achieved well above the estimate of CHF 20,000 – CHF 40,000. The winning bidder paying CHF 165,100, (£155,900), including buyer’s premium.
More details at Christie’s.
