As for the Pateks, there are a number of ref. 2499s within the sale however my choose is Lot 18, a ref. 1563 split-second chronograph in a “Tasti-Tondi” case. If I might personal one classic Patek, it might be this precise watch. Three examples are recognized and whereas the opposite two had been owned by jazz legend Duke Ellington (now within the Patek museum) and Jean-Claude Biver, this specific 1563 is the very best of the trio. The provenance is unconfirmed however a caseback engraving reads “L. Estée” with the monogram “S.G.H.” A really, very comparable engraving is discovered on this Breguet pocket watch which, in line with Breguet’s archives, was bought to “Monsieur Gimbel Saks,” pointing to the Gimbel household that constructed Gimbels and Saks Fifth Avenue. Given the “L. Estée” engraving, there’s a potential tie in right here to Estée Lauder, one other rich New Yorker whose model of cosmetics was bought at Saks, however that’s, once more, unconfirmed. The watch final bought in 2013 for CHF 1,445,000, Lot 18 carries an estimate of CHF 1,000,000-3,000,000.
