For time to turn timeless it needs to be wrapped in
something that goes beyond being a product. It has to be a labour of love, of
skilled workmanship and a heritage that lives on for generations.
A watch reflects more about the choice and character of the
wearer and can be one of the most noticeable accessories that adorns us.
The watches listed below would be amongst the most expensive
ones made and a few of them would be classified more in terms of jewelry than
actual timepieces but all involve extremely skilled workmanship, top quality
components and a truly luxurious lineage.
Truly Meta-Luxury Time Style.
Chopard 201-Carat
Price: $25 million
 |
| Chopard 201-Carat |
Hidden beneath this
rainbow of gems and precious stones, is a watch, surrounded by three
heart-shaped diamonds each different from the other: a pink 15-carat rock, a
blue 12-carat and a colourless 11-carat. Fixed on a diamond-encrusted bracelet
made of white and yellow gold, This is the world’s most expensive watch…
Patek Phillipe Henry Graves
Supercomplication Pocket Watch
Price: $11 million
 |
| Patek Phillipe Henry Graves Supercomplication Pocket Watch |
This one-of-a-kind
pocket watch was made in 1933 yet looks contemporary enough to have been forged
today. Named after the banker it was specially commissioned for, this timepiece
is constructed out of solid 18-carat gold. It still looks modern today and its
chronological functions and chiming minute repeater are more suited to today’s
era than the 1930s. A piece of art ahead of its time.
Price: $4.6 million
 |
| Louis Moinet Meteoris Watch |
Louis Moinet collected more than meteorite dust to help make
this masterpiece. He collected samples from the Moon and an asteroid as well as
a Mars meteorite to put into each of his Meteoris watches. It's not a bad price
to wear a piece of the Moon on your wrist and it does come in a set of four.
The Piaget
Emperador Temple
Price: $3.3 million
 |
| The Piaget Emperador Temple |
Essentially two
watches-in-one, Piaget’s Emperador
Temple is one of the most
‘bling’ timepieces money can buy. Covered in 1,212 diamonds, it’s pyramid style
front opens up to reveal a second face, and can be closed over to be simply
worn as a bracelet. The case holds 688 brilliant and baguette-cut diamonds
while the second face possesses 173 of the world’s most valuable stone. Not to
be outdone, the bracelet holds 350 diamonds of its own. A watch for someone who
has everything else.
Patek Philippe Model 2523 Heures Universelles
Price: $2.9 million
 |
| Patek Philippe Model 2523 Heures Universelles |
The watch epitomises
modern sophistication. This Patek Philippe watch, though almost 60 years old,
is an elegant yet original 18-carat gold piece with a splash of colour in the
centre dial. The diagram of North America
helped the watch to sell for its near $3 million price tag at an auction in
2002.
Cartier Secret Watch with Phoenix Décor
Price: $2.75 million
 |
| Cartier Secret Watch with Phoenix Décor |
A watch disguised as
a glistening bracelet, Cartier’s Phoenix
timepiece is made of 18-carat, rhodium-plated white gold. Encompassing over
3,000 brilliant-cut diamonds, a 3.53-carat portrait-cut diamond and emerald
embellishments, this watch might be secret but it's not very subtle. In tune
with the legend of cartier it belongs more in a royal treasure chest than on a
commoner’s wrist.
Franck Muller The Aeternitas Mega 4
Price: $2.4 million
 |
| Franck Muller The Aeternitas Mega 4 |
Hailed as the most intricate wrist watch ever created, the
Aeternitas Mega 4 is specially manufactured by Franck Muller and can only be
purchase in New York and Geneva. It has the tune of Carillon
Westminster which comes in 3 time zones, 999-year calendar and chimes every
hour. This special watch can be purchased at a price of about $2.4 million.
Parmigiani Fleurier - Fibonacci Pocket Watch
Price: $2.4 million
 |
| Parmigiani Fleurier - Fibonacci Pocket Watch |
Renowned clock manufacturer Parmigiani Fleurier, well known among connoisseurs for their collaboration with Bugatti has created a masterpiece: a timepiece crafted of Palladium.
Named after the nickname of Italy’s most famous mathematician,
Leonardo Pisano, the Fibonacci can take up to two years to make and dismisses
sparkly diamonds for mother-of-pearl counters – where the majority of its hefty
price tag can be attributed to. Alongside a white gold dial and cathedral
chimes, this pocket watch is of a more feminine taste than the norm, featuring
a lotus flower embellishment on the front.
An elaborately engraved lily was selected by Parmigiani to ornament the face of the chronograph and filigree hand-engraving on the bridge augment the elegance.
Blancpain Tourbillon Diamants
Price: $1.8 million
 |
| Blancpain Tourbillon Diamants |
A diamond-heavy piece, the Tourbillon Diamants by Blancpain
incorporates 480 diamonds on a white gold case. The watch features a
self-winding function and a seven-day power reserve as well as being
water-resistant. It is instantly recognizable and an ultra luxurious Blancpain
masterpiece.
Richard Mille RM 56 Felipe Massa Sapphire Watch
Price: $1.7 million
 |
| Richard Mille RM 56 Felipe Massa Sapphire Watch |
One thing all watches
above the $1 million price tag have is exclusivity, and they don’t come much
more exclusive than the RM 56 Felipe Massa watch. With only five made in the
world, the Richard Mille creation is covered with sapphire crystal and a clear
face allowing the fortunate owners to view into the timepiece’s mechanisms.
Hublot Big Bang
Price $ 1 million
 |
| Hublot Big Bang |
Hublot made the million dollar big bang watch out of white
gold and rare baguette cut black diamonds. almost 550 diamonds are all over the
watch, with a total of 34.5 carats. Hublot took its time making the watch. Over
2000 hours went into it. The movement is a manually wound tourbillon. Functions
include the time (tourbillon acts as the seconds indicator), and a power
reserve indicator.
It is rare, took a lot of time to make, is for men, and is
actually very attractive. It is supposed to inspire envy, awe, and a bit of
anger. A Power watch.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oaks Watch
Price: $1.3 million
 |
| Audemars Piguet Royal Oaks Watch |
With an 18-carat white gold bezel, 104 baguettes on the case
and a dial encrusted with 116 diamonds, Audemars Piguet’s diamond Royal Oaks
watch is a standard entry into elite wristwatch terrain. More for the overtly
luxurious than understated it still ranks as one of the finest pieces ever
made.
