18kt Speedmaster fails in NY - Anyone see it?

This was offered by Bonhams NY and failed to sell at $40,000 low estimate.



It is always hard to judge these without holding them. They can easily become worn, or the lines blurred. In this case the bezel looks original and good from the photo, and the dial is the oval O.

If I had been asked I would set the estimate 18,000 to 25,000 and let the market decide.

Buyers for this reference are very thin on the ground, and rightly very picky.

I am wondering if anyone saw this and could let us know if there was anything wrong - in which case the auction house simply got the estimate wrong? (Too high)

Here is link to auction

https://www.bonhams.com/auction/306...-watch-worn-on-the-moon-ref-145022-69-c-1969/

$40,000 + 28% premium + possible 8+% sales tax makes this a minimum $55,000 watch for a buyer. Can't really tell from the pics but it may have been freshened up, especially the bracelet. And this was an ONLINE auction, in my experience they don't result in the best prices when compared to a LIVE auction, I think this watch would have done better in that environment. The market is tired right now, world unrest, election in two weeks, people have pulled in their horns and keeping their powder dry, imo.

I wonder if the market is being affected by the newly released gold speedies you can walk into most AD’s and buy.

Possible, but I would think those are two separate markets.