One of the most complete collections of Swatch watches in the world sold for HK$51,707,500 or nearly $6,650,000 in Hong Kong recently. Swiss businessman Peter Blum and his wife Linda assembled the collection over a period of years. The collection’s 4363 pieces includes a large number of prototypes, hybrids and production variants never brought to market.
Many of the prototypes date from the extraordinary period prior to commercialization of the first Swatch watches in the early 1980s, and so are extremely rare. Among the most interesting and sought-after by collectors are a number of prototypes designed by the American artist Keith Haring, as well as the artist’s legendary Swatch watches Modele avec Personnage, Milles Pattes, Serpent and Blanc sur Noir. Additional rarities include Swatch watches created by artists Mimmo Paladino, Alfred Hofkunst and Sam Francis.
Conducted by Phillips de Pury & Company, this one-of-a-kind auction attracted considerable interest during pre-sale showings in New York, London and Shanghai, where it was exhibited at the Swatch Art Peace Hotel, the restored cultural landmark and art hotel on the Bund. The Four Seasons Hotel in Hong Kong provided the backdrop for what proved to be a historic Swatch watch sale.
Article originally published on December 08, 2011 Mike Disher
that will be available in the spring.
As Swatch celebrates 30 years of creating colorful, exciting watches in line with the latest trends, the incredible story of Swatch is embodied in a special 30th anniversary watch, 'Swatch Est. 1983'.
