Which is the rarest watch you’ve ever owned?

vibe · Sep 25, 2023

This one is incredibly rare and I can hardly believe I was able to snag one. I bought it in late 2020 after hunting for over a year. This is a transitional dial Yema Superman 550016.

Fallout Boy · Sep 25, 2023

@kgb the NOMOS 👍👍👍

Raworth · Nov 6, 2023

This one belonged to grandma
A guy that seems to know told me it is a Vachcie made for Versace circa 1930 wind movement. Movement sitting on top of a 5c Aussie coin (19.41 mm) and another one next to it and the cotton tip for reference

gbesq · Nov 6, 2023

Probably this 1952 first generation Globemaster with a solid gold bezel and a two tone honeycomb crosshair dial with gold arrowhead markers. To my knowledge, there are very few of these around, particularly in this condition.

Here’s the story from Desmond’s website:
https://download1648.mediafire.com/...kq7vZkv_B/r6z1f6wcg9qeqfg/Globemasterpost.pdf

Zapatta · Nov 6, 2023

In terms of rarity definitely both of these equally;

Ref. 2517 in solid gold with 352rg movement and rare dial configuration (only 2 known examples without graduation scale)

&

Also ref. 2517 with plank/double signed dial and additional line of text (officially certified) which makes it only known example in this configuration

DManzaluni · Nov 6, 2023

R Raworth
This one belonged to grandma
A guy that seems to know told me it is a Vachcie made for Versace circa 1930 wind movement. Movement sitting on top of a 5c Aussie coin (19.41 mm) and another one next to it and the cotton tip for reference

What exactly is a VACHCIE? Is it something to do with cows? If so, what is that second C doing in there? Is that supposed to read Cie? (French for company?) Cow company? wind-powered cow? Wind powered is quite advanced for a 1930 watch. How did it work in a wristwatch? assuming that 18ct thing is a strap/bracelet?

If so, what is the relevance of it being made 15 years before gianni versace was born? Or did the company come into existence before the bloke himself was born?

I only ask cos there was quite a famous watch company with vaguely similar first syllable of the nomenclature and I this obviously isn't one of theirs. Or is that why you carefully don't show the movement? (On the upside, it does look as if it might be worth the 5c that you show plus the melt)

EDIT Sorry, after posting I noticed that you reference not one, but two 5c coins. Making 10c in total. except for the melt i am not sure it is worth that much. But this isn't the place for valuations.

gkcousar · Nov 6, 2023

I have a 1939 Omega Acier Staybrite, 17mm ladies watch, weighing just 10.9g that I purchased at auction earlier this year for only £140 including fees that also included in the lot a Seiko Kinetic. It's possibly a cocktail watch but I am unsure, however it is fully working upon winding & keeps excellent time with beautiful provenance as it comes with a receipt in French from Lille, dated 9th March 1940, therefore it was purchased new only a few months before the the signing of the 22nd June 1940 armistice following the French surrender to Germany after the Battle of France which gives this lovely little Omega a little bit of "je ne sais quoi" so opinions are welcome. Thank you!

maanu · Nov 6, 2023

Something with 40mm Stainless Steel

rkny18 · Nov 6, 2023

In the 1990s, when I was in my 20s, I bought an incredible rectangular Art Deco Omega, in white gold, with hinged lugs, and a dial marked Shreve Crump and Low, from an old watchmaker on 73rd St. in NYC.

I think I paid $350 for it. It was a gorgeous piece.

It was a great watch, but not really my style. So I immediately walked over to Stewart Ungar’s shop, Time Will Tell, on Madison Ave. and sold it to him for $750. I thought I was very clever.

A few years later, it popped up in a Sotheby’s or Christie’s catalog for all kinds of money. I didn’t feel too smart then.

Even dumber, I didn’t take a photo of it.

Raworth · Nov 7, 2023

Hey, this an image of the back
The case measures aprox 14mm, not sure about the movement though

DManzaluni
What exactly is a VACHCIE? Is it something to do with cows? If so, what is that second C doing in there? Is that supposed to read Cie? (French for company?) Cow company? wind-powered cow? Wind powered is quite advanced for a 1930 watch. How did it work in a wristwatch? assuming that 18ct thing is a strap/bracelet?

If so, what is the relevance of it being made 15 years before gianni versace was born? Or did the company come into existence before the bloke himself was born?

I only ask cos there was quite a famous watch company with vaguely similar first syllable of the nomenclature and I this obviously isn't one of theirs. Or is that why you carefully don't show the movement? (On the upside, it does look as if it might be worth the 5c that you show plus the melt)

EDIT Sorry, after posting I noticed that you reference not one, but two 5c coins. Making 10c in total. except for the melt i am not sure it is worth that much. But this isn't the place for valuations.

DManzaluni · Nov 7, 2023

So the case is probably a different maker from the bracelet, even though they are both 18ct.. And judging from the reference to Grandma, your guy seems to think it may have been a Cuban company which he called VachCie?

FYI the well known Swiss watch company starting with V which dates back to 1930 never signed their watches without some sort of reference to the wordd CONSTANTIN. I don't know how far back Versace's watches go but, again, it is unlikely to date back much further than the founder's birth. Arcon is more llikely to be a trade mark of some import/export firm. As for Gianni being a Mozartian child prodigy who had already moved on from designing clothes to designing watches well before his pre-teens, I still think it unlikely

Bernhard J · Nov 7, 2023

My recently bought Tiffany with IWC Cal. 75 movement and Cresarrow case.

Bernhard J · Nov 7, 2023

It might, however compete with this one, having a black enamel dial.

Pascal S · Apr 14, 2024

During my Lemania 5100 collecting days, I ran into a few oddities, some of which I pulled the trigger on.

One was this Airway Monza...

From what I could gather in my research, this watch was made by well-known sub-contractor Benedom before the company was absorbed by LVMH to become Christian Dior's watchmaking arm. When this chronograph was made, it appears that Airway was meant to be an actual brand but it never took off the ground. It is to be noted that a near identical model with blue dial was sold under the name "Theorein Silverstone".

Still a rare Lemania 5100 chronograph, but much better known nowadays is the Heuer Audi Sport.

I still feel sick about having had to sell this one, as nowadays sourcing one is well above my budget.

Finally, another rarity is a watch I inherited from my Dad: a French Air Force Breitling Navitimer 2100.

A small batch of these were made and sent to the French military for testing, but their ESA quartz module was so fragile that they were quickly rejected, and the Air Force finally went for a similar-looking ana-digi model from Pulsar.