Cool Finds: a vintage Heuer Skipper, a mint LeCoultre Quartermaster and a gorgeous Vacheron-Constantin Triple Date Moonphase, sold by Antiquorum

Auctions are always offering superb opportunities to find cool watches, but (unfortunately) mainly vintage Rolexes and Pateks. Not that we have a problem here, at Monochrome-Watches, with these two brands, but we also love the exclusivity and originality of understated watches. Tomorrow (Tuesday, September 30th, 2014), the famous auction house Antiquorum will host a huge sale, full of interesting watches (at least, for us). Here are 3 of them that we wanted to show you.

Lot 285 – A vintage Heuer Skipper

This is a rare one. Don’t be fooled by the Autavia shape. Even if it is technically speaking an Autavia, the Skipper is different and mainly, very hard to find. What we have here is a Heuer ref. 73464, produced during the 1970s (it was part of the 1971, 1972 and 1973 catalogs). What differentiates this Skipper from a classical Autavia is its blue dial and bezel and the 3-colour 15-minute counter. Inside ticks a Valjous 7734 movement (the classical 7730 manual calibre with a date feature) and not the automatic Calibre 11. The 15-minute scale is actually quite odd as the minute hand jumps twice per minute (the base movement hosts a 30-minute scale). It is also scaled from 15 to 0, as it represents a countdown sequence at the beginning of a yacht race.

This example of a Heuer Skipper (listed here) comes in a worn but condition and with its rare (and expansive) Gay-Frere metallic bracelet. It is estimated between 1,500 and 2,500 USD, which represents for us a very nice opportunity to have an Autavia, but not the one worn by all the other collectors.

Lot 326 – a Mint LeCoultre Quartermaster

This watch is clearly part of the understated league, and that’s a shame (remember the time that we tried to persuade JLC to make a reissue of this rare bird?) Let’s resume briefly… First of all, it is a rare timepiece. Only 2500 of them have been produced during the 1950s and 1960s. Then it is the first and only 24-hour watch ever produced by LeCoultre. Finally, it has this very appealing charm of the vintage, with its 34mm case, very cool stylized indexes and hour markers, just the right amount of patina and this beautiful black and gilt dial. It is also water-resistant and anti-magnetic.

This specific example of a LeCoultre Quartermaster is certainly one of the most beautiful we’ve seen so far, in a truly mint condition. It is for sale at a ridiculously low price (listed here) – estimate 1,500 – 1,800 USD.

Lot 285 – a Vacheron Constantin Ref. 47052 triple date moonphase

Now we are moving to something totally different. But it looks absolutely brilliant. That is what we can call a complete calendar watch. On the dial of the Vacheron Constantin Ref. 47052, we can see 3 sub-dials: one at 3 for the date, one at 9 for the day and one at 6 for the moon phase. What is more surprising is the chapter ring around the dial that indicates simultaneously the month and the week of the year. In a single look at your watch, you are able to know exactly all the required information. This Vacheron Constantin was manufactured in 2002 and it comes in a 18k yellow gold case that measures 36mm (yes, 10 years ago, that was a normal size for a dress watch).

These multiple indications are powered by an automatic movement, the Calibre 1126, with its 21k gold rotor and high-end finishes. It is listed here and is estimated between 10.000 and 15.000 USD. A very good opportunity to enter into the world of Haute-Horlogerie and complications for a reasonable price.

These lots are only a very short overview of what is for sale tomorrow (30th September 2014). The full catalog is available here and online auctions are possible, for those who are not living in NYC. This Antiquorum auction starts at 10am NYC-time.