Newsletter 9.18.2022
By Charlie Dunne
I was messaged the other day by a friend Christie’s 100 luxury Instagram accounts to follow: Watches article. I’ll be perfectly honest in that I clicked the link without any expectation of being included in the list. Just months prior I spent the better half of an afternoon packing up hundreds of auction catalogs (many of which by Christie’s) before moving south.
I have yet to unpack a few boxes, but recall the books and catalogs being both of the most cumbersome and important. Over the years I really didn’t have the coin to be purchasing vintage watches. Instead I collected just about every piece of literature on the subject I could get my hands on. Needless to say, the unexpected acknowledgment was quite humbling to me as I spent years admiring and learning about timepieces sold by the auction house.
“As the name suggests, Charlie Dunne’s Instagram is dedicated to his passion for vintage watches. He loves researching every model’s history and each timepiece’s provenance, then sharing his findings with his followers. A recent example of his detective work involved tracing the original owner of a rare, 75-year-old Patek Philippe reference 1526, which turned out to have been purchased in Paris by an economist on the board of the International Monetary Fund.”
You can see the first 20 accounts in what will become a five part series by following the link below.
Italian Watch Spotter: Pope Francis' Watch At Charity Auction: Once Upon A Time Watch Project
Co-Founder of Italian Watch Spotter Fabrizio Bonvicino recently wrote about Brian LaViolette and the forthcoming charity auction of Pope Francis’ Swatch. Obviously, I have admired many of the Italian collectors and authors’ passion when it comes to vintage-watch scholarship. However, I don’t believe I have been as vocal about the younger generation of Italian-watch enthusiasts who I have great respect for.
Over the past few years, I’ve been paying close attention to Bonvicino (and several others throughout Europe) who are doing awesome things in both traditional and social media to promote watch collecting and culture. IWS is a great example, as they seemingly cover the full spectrum of what watch collectors are fascinated by. Whether catching the latest watch on a sports icon’s wrist, auction coverage of important vintage timepieces, highlighting independent watchmakers, as well as spreading the gospel of vintage watch boxes and ephemera (a subject that I often am convinced only I could be so crazy enough to obsess over).
All this being said, it is really awesome to have colleagues and friends all over the world with a shared passion for timepieces and storytelling. Looking forward to crossing paths with my international friends in the future.
Read the article below:
https://italianwatchspotter.com/pope-francis-watch-up-for-auction/?lang=en
You can follow Fabrizio Bonvicino and Italian Watch Spotter on Instagram below:
Bob's Watches: Vintage Rolex GMT-Master 1675 "Fuchsia"
Brandon Frazin, vintage watch expert and Director of Vintage at Bob’s Watches, just highlighted a Rolex GMT-Master "Fuchsia reference 1675 providing a cool overview on the model. I’m a bit late to the party as this was actually the first video I’ve caught on Bob’s YouTube. I’ve been a fan of Frazin’s work for a handful of years and upon seeing him on screen (then realizing Bob’s has a pretty large video catalog to catch up on) I had to subscribe to the channel.
As you may recall I did a bit of a recap on the “Fuchsia” phenomenon a few weeks back. After catching up with a few people on the subject, I anticipate I will be expanding the article in the near future.
You can watch the video below on Bob’s Watches YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3v62Th5TDjE
Follow Brandon Frazin on Instagram below:
https://www.instagram.com/brandonfrazin1680/
Vintage Patek Philippe Catalog Circa 1992
Earlier in the week I scanned a 1992 catalog from Patek Philippe which includes a variety of references including. Some of which are cult classics, others are unacknowledged timepieces from the past. I find the old marketing material and catalogs to be really fascinating, and I have included a few photos of timepieces from the past year within the article.
Checkout the catalog below.
https://www.strictlyvintagewatches.com/vintage-patek-philippe-catalog-circa-1992
Happenings: Dubai Watch Week in NYC (Sept. 24-25)
Next week I will be in The Big Apple for Dubai Watch Week with my colleague Eric Wind. Eric will be participating in the ‘Made In America’ panel alongside watch designer Aldis Hodge, Parchie founder Cara Barrett, and Chief Design Officer of Shinola Brandon Little.
Please come say hello to us if you are in the house!
“Observing American grass-root attempts at reviving watchmaking as a local industry. Is it a matter of heritage and generations of practice that promote a healthy watch industry, or will true grit prevail? We bring in American-made watchmakers to reveal their journey to answer this question, while taking into account increasing consumer demand by Americans for Made in America.
Seating is on first come, first served basis so please arrive on time as there is limited seating.
For those who cannot attend, the full panel will air on our page on October 2022.”
Learn more about the panel below:
https://www.dubaiwatchweek.com/activities/panels/made-america
