Inside The $75.8 Million Watch Auction That Made History

Phillips has set a new benchmark for the American watch market after its New York Watch Auction: XIV became the highest-grossing watch auction ever held in the United States.

Staged across two days in association with Bacs & Russo, the sale achieved a remarkable $75.8 million, eclipsing the previous U.S. record set by Phillips in December, when a watch auction totalled $43.5 million. Every lot found a buyer, delivering a 100 percent sell-through rate and underlining the continued appetite for rare, highly collectable

timepieces at the very top end of the market.

The result was led by an extraordinary F.P. Journe Chronomètre à Résonance “Souscription, No. 007”, which sold for $13.92 million after almost nine minutes of bidding. The price established several records at once, making it the most expensive F.P. Journe ever sold, the most valuable watch by an independent watchmaker ever offered at commercial auction, and the most expensive 21st-century watch to sell in that setting.

It was a defining moment not only for Phillips, but for the growing dominance of independent watchmaking within serious collecting circles. F.P. Journe was the clear star of the sale, with four additional watches by the maker achieving prices between $1.9 million and $5 million. In total, the brand accounted for half of the top 10 results, further cementing François-Paul Journe’s position as one of the most sought-after living watchmakers.

The broader independent watchmaking category also performed strongly. A Kari Voutilainen Masterpiece Chronograph, carrying a low estimate of $120,000, soared to $1.8 million, while a Roger Smith Ref. Series 3 “Unique Piece” sold for $1.2 million, setting a new record for the model.

Traditional powerhouses were far from absent. A possibly unique Patek Philippe Ref. 5004G-020, once owned by Eric Clapton, achieved $5.2 million against a low estimate of $700,000, while a Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 sold for just under $4 million. Rolex also entered the top 10, with a 1969 Daytona Ref. 6241 “John Player Special” realising $1.8 million.

Across the sale, 16 watches surpassed the $1 million mark, reinforcing the depth of demand among collectors for historically important, rare and provenance-rich pieces.

For Phillips, the result marks another major coup in an increasingly competitive auction landscape. For the watch world, it signals something more significant: independent watchmaking is no longer a niche pursuit for connoisseurs alone. At the highest levels of collecting, it is now commanding the kind of prices once reserved almost exclusively for the biggest heritage names.