Patek Philippe watch is the most expensive ever sold at Christie’s 10th anniversary Dubai auction

The timepiece was one of several sold in a Dhs 9.7m auction last night

An extremely rare wristwatch made by Patek Philippe has become the most expensive ever purchased at an auction in Dubai.

Patek Philippe, ref. 5101R-001, is an extremely rare 18k pink gold rectangular Tourbillon Chronometer Wristwatch with 10 day power reserve, made circa 2015, selling for $155,000 / AED563,439 ** to a private bidder. It had been valued between Dhs 480,000 and Dhs 840,000 and was the most modern yet complicated piece to be included in the auction having made its debut in 2003. It was one of 100 watches to go under the hammer at a Christie’s auction last night at Emirates Towers Hotel.

Christie’s said the auction, which totaled more than Dhs 9.7m ($2.6m), showed that the appetite for expensive and luxury watches was still high among private buyers and collectors.

"Characteristic for Patek Philippe, hardly any signs on the outside of the piece would reveal the complexity of its inner workings. Understated elegance has always been a hallmark of Patek Philippe but the tourbillon cage is in fact concealed for a very practical reason - the oil used to lubricate the mechanism is sensitive to ultraviolet rays and would decompose if exposed to daylight, thus losing its beneficial tribological properties," noted Christie's on its website.

Other watches sold last night

2009 Roger Dubuis 18k white gold - Dhs454,386 ($125,000)

1983 Rolex 18k gold - Dhs 327,158 ($90,000)

2007 Richard Mille 18k white gold - Dhs 318,070 ($87,500)

1881 Louis Audemars 18k pink gold - Dhs 272,632 ($75,000)

2001 Rolex Dhs 18k white gold - Dhs 249,912 ($68,750)

2009 Patek Philippe 18k white gold - Dhs 215,833 ($59,375)

2006 Rolex 18k gold - Dhs 204,474 ($56,250)