On March 18, 202 4, Philips , the world ' s leading au ction house , announced that it will be ex hibit ing and au ction ing the Pat ek Philippe ultra - lux ury watch " R ef . 96 Country me L une ", which was own ed by Pu yi , the last em peror of the Qing Dyn ast y . According to experts , the w inning price of the watch is expected to exce ed 30 million yuan (abo ut 200 million yuan), which could be one of the highest in watch au ction history .
The Story of a C lock That Mak es History
This watch was manufact ured in the 1920 s , about a century ago . At the time , Pat ek Philippe was making special wat ches for the European royal no bility . There are various the ories as to how the young Em peror Pu yi ac quir ed the watch , but there are records that Pu yi , who had a strong interest in Western culture , purchas ed it directly through his ento ur age .
This watch , which accom pani ed Pu yi ' s tum ultu ous life , has followed a number of strange f ates from the Manch urian period to the post - war concentration camp period . James Marks , a watch expert , points out that " the true value of this watch lies not only in the fact that it is a mere technical master pie ce , but also in that it is an important witness to the history of East Asia in the 20 th century . "
Pat ek Philippe ' s current status
On the other hand , the background of this au ction attra cting attention is the management situation of Pat ek Philippe himself , known as the " king of the watch . " In recent years , the company is fac ing the following challenges :
- Mov ing away from mechani cal clo cks , main ly for young people
- Shar p growth in the smart watch market sh rin ks the traditional lux ury watch market
- Conc ern s about price bub ble col lap se in colle ctor markets
- Dela yed response to susta ina bility
Luca Sol letti , a Swiss watch industry analy st , said : " Pat ek Philippe has adopted a strategy of activ ely lever aging its histor ical her itage to pres erve its brand value . Pu yi ' s watch au ction is part of that . "
Tr ends in the colle ctor market
The au ction has attra cted a lot of interest from wealth y colle ctors in Asia , especially in China . In particular , the following factors are expected to bo ost the high - p ric ed w inning bid :
- It belong s to a histor ical figure named Pu yi .
- It is an early model of Pat ek Philippe , with very few existing models .
- that it is preser ved in perfect condition .
- China ' s cultural property return boom
Hong Kong - based watch colle ctor William Cheng said : " This watch is not just an orn ament , it is extremely valua ble as an investment object . Over the past dec ade , the return on investment in lux ury wat ches has sur pas sed that of the stock market . "
Pros pe cts for the future
Pat ek Philippe is expected to take advantage of the au ction to roll out a new marketing strategy that combin es the brand ' s histor ical values with contempor ary appe al . In particular , the following dire ctions will be noted :
- The fusion of digital technology and traditional watch technology
- Special collection for Asian market
- Ex pand ed entry model Whatsapp for young people
- Adop tion of sustainable materials
This Pu yi watch au ction may be a symbo lic event that marks a tur ning point in the traditional lux ury watch industry , beyond just a high - p ric ed deal . The results will be announced in aut umn 202 4.