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Words – Hannah Silver
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pieces prior to the event, as they will spend September touring the world before the sale, all proceeds from which will help to finance research for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a degenerative disease that affects 250,000 young people around the world. To help support the cause, get your bid in early for one of the highlights from the auction that we’ve selected below.
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In the last five years, the prestigious Only Watch event - recognised as the world’s first charity watch auction - has become one of the most anticipated dates in the timepiece calendar. Thirty-eight of the world’s leading watch brands have each produced a one-off, unique timepiece specially created for the ceremony which is to be held in Monaco on 28 September. There’s a chance to view these incredible
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o n ly The Only Watch charity auction is a unique chance to land a once-in-a-lifetime piece (and not feel pangs about the cost)
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Hublot Hublot is no stranger to innovation: its Magic Gold timepiece was crafted from the first scratch-resistant 18ct gold in history. For Only Watch, it has raised the bar again, creating a watch that’s the subject of an international patent application. The unique piece is made from a brightly coloured ceramic never used before. The red material that forms the bezel took months of R&D work, and contrasts nicely against the satin-finished black ceramic case that houses the fully skeleton-worked tourbillion movement. hublot.com
Roger Dubuis Elegant as always, Roger Dubuis’ s Only Watch piece is a beautifully designed piece in charcoal-grey satin featuring a sunburst centre on the dial. A flying tourbillion ring at half past seven and micro-rotor at half past ten ensure it’s as technically accomplished as you’d expect. rogerdubuis.com
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Ulysse Nardin Excelling in marine chronometers, Ulysee Nardin has produced a magnificent example for Only Watch. Powered by the impressive UN-118 calibre - the brand’s self-winding base calibre built entirely in-house - the Marine Chronometer Manufacture Only Watch also has a beautifully elegant handcrafted enamel dial. ulysse-nardin.ch
Christophe Claret The X-TREM-1 Pinball is a striking piece of engineering fun. It tells the time with tiny metal balls which indicate hours and minutes through grilled sapphire tubes, while the appearance of the movement itself has also been reworked so it resembles the inside of a pinball machine with bumpers, slingshots and balls all evoked. You ain’t seen nothing like this in any amusement hall. christopheclaret.com
Patek Philippe The Reference 5004 was part of the Patek Philippe Grand Complications collection between 1995 and 2011, and it perfectly embodies the traditional, manually wound chronographs that the brand excels in producing. The movement, comprising 407 parts, has in the past been housed in white gold, yellow gold, platinum and steel, but for Only Watch Patek has produced the first version ever crafted in solid titanium. patek.com
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Jaquet Droz Faithful to the core values of the brand, Jaquet Droz’s timepiece focuses on well-thought-out design and a beautiful aesthetic, presenting the ultimate in dial art. The Loving Butterfly is inspired by architecture and botany in the Enlightenment and features the cherubic emblem of the Italian Renaissance and Baroque periods. The design itself was drawn by one of the incredible automata produced by Pierre Jaquet Droz in the 18th century and was then engraved and painted in a painstakingly detailed process. There’s a sense of volume that you might not get with other Jaquet Droz pieces, thanks to the gold decor that was worked before being applied to the dial and the gold wire legs of the delicate butterfly which, suspended, wave slightly with every wrist movement. jaquet-droz.com
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Breguet Breguet’s hand-wound movement, originally known as the 2310, is a historical piece that was developed in the 1940s by Albert Piguet and has since been used by many brands in their watches. Now, Breguet is bringing the distinguished movement back to life in the newly designed reference 5284. There’s incredible attention to detail, from the open-tipped hands created by the brand’s founder to the centrepiece of the watch, the movement itself, which has been entirely designed by hand. Understated decoration, like the fine fluting on the caseband, all nod to Breguet’s rich history of classic timepieces. breguet.com - 114 -
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