These Rare Patek Philippe Watches Owned By Eric Clapton Are Heading To Auction
Including a jaw-dropping Ref. 5004 that could fetch more than $1 million via the Philipps New York Watch Auction: XIV.
Arguably even more famous than his vaunted guitar collection is the watch rotation of legendary axman Eric Clapton, with a series of historic timepieces hitting the auction block via the Phillips New York Watch Auction: XIV next month.
Billed by the luxury auction house as “arguably the most influential celebrity watch collector of all time,” more than a dozen watches owned by Clapton have been sold by Philipps over the years, with the number set to increase while reaching possibly jaw-dropping final hammer prices. Philipps notes on its company site that “Clapton operates on a very different plane of existence for watch collectors compared to the average individual,” with past watch auctions featuring Clapton timepieces like a Rolex GMT-Master II ref. 116710LN.
The latest offering in lot 88 kicks into high gear starting on June 13th, and centers around Patek Philippe timepieces like the Ref. 5004G-020, a rose dial watch featuring a white gold perpetual calendar split-seconds chronograph with moon phase settings and a 24-hour indicator in elegant fashion. The wristwatch, asRobb Report also notes, could sell for as much as $1.4 million.
The Ref. 5004G-020, produced for 16 years between 1994 and 2010, secured its place in the present-day pantheon of Patek timepieces, the auction house says, calling it “one of the great classics of modern Patek Philippe history.” Other gems from Rolex and F.P. Journe lead a watch auction lineup packed with rarities aplenty, the auction house said, but Clapton’s timepiece assortment is especially jealousy-inducing.
The stainless steel Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 5711/1A-010 in its “extremely well-preserved” condition also goes up for auction month, with the Ref. 5711 debuting in 2006 to mark 30 years of the Nautilus. Clapton previously added it to his own highly enviable watch collection in 2018.
Philipps has sung the praises of Clapton’s horological savvy, noting that the famed Cream and Yardbirds guitarist has “legendary” taste in timepieces, as the British rocker “helped popularize vintage Universal Genève,” while Phillips adds that his “wide-ranging collection of vintage Patek Philippe could make even the most impressive of today’s collectors jealous.” Keep an eye on the Phillips auction site to see how much Clapton’s treasured watches sell for next month.