Vente aux enchères : Patek Phillpe pulvérise tous les records avec une montre à 15.2 millions

November 10, 2025

Auction: Patek Philippe shatters all records with a watch selling for 15.2 million

Who said watches weren't a good investment? Certainly not Patek. Sold for 11.8 million euros in 2016, this watch Patek Philippe 1518 of 1943 has just reached 15.2 million euros during a new sale.

On November 9th at Phillips in Geneva, the watchmaker thus shattered his own record for a wristwatch worth 3.4 million euros at the time of sale “Decade One (2015-2025)”, an anniversary sale celebrating ten years of watch auctions at Phillips, already known for having branded some of the biggest results in the market.

For the previous buyer, this resale was almost a masterstroke: in less than ten years, the value of its 1518 jumped by nearly 30%offering him a capital gain of approximately 3.4 million euros on a single timepiece.

The Patek Philippe 1518: a watch sold for 15.2 million in Geneva

"You never truly own a Patek." : rarely the famous motto of this Maison It would not have seemed as right as on the evening of this Geneva sale, where the reference 1518 in steel passed from wrist to… wrist via the auction hammer.

Sold for approximately 11.8 million euros in 2016, the same watch reached 14.19 million Swiss francs (or 15.2 million euros) after a bidding war lasting just over nine minutes involving five bidders, both in the room and on the telephone. In less than ten minutes, the price shattered the watch's previous record and solidified Phillips' position as a dominant player in high-end watch sales. The fact that this same watch already held a record in 2016 further reinforces the symbolic significance of the event. Patek has just broken the record again… Patek, confirming the Maison as the ultimate benchmark in the ultra-high-end segment.

For the seller, the operation is exemplary: the difference between the 2016 transaction (approximately €11.8 million) and the hammer price in 2025 (€15.2 million) represents a capital gain of approximately 3.4 million eurosWhen considered in relation to the length of detention, this is equivalent to an average theoretical gain of around 340,000 euros per year over nearly a decade, not including fees and taxes, which puts this 1518 on par with some of the best alternative investments of the last ten years.

Introduced in 1941, the Patek Philippe 1518 is the world's first mass-produced perpetual calendar chronograph, a technical feat that makes it a major milestone in the history of the wristwatch. Approximately 280 examples were made, the vast majority in yellow gold, a minority in rose gold, and only four in stainless steel, the latter constituting the absolute Holy Grail for connoisseurs, including the 1518 watch we are talking about, which is distinguished by this extreme rarity of steel, combined with an impeccably preserved period design, tachymeter scale dial and architecture typical of the 1940s.

An autumn 2025 rich in auctions shows

This sale takes place during a particularly busy autumn of 2025, where Geneva concentrates in just a few days the sales of Phillips, Christie's, Sotheby's and Antiquorum, for a total far exceeding the billion Swiss francs over the past decade.

The catalogues line up Rolex Daytona collectible, standalone pieces and, of course, a selection of vintage and contemporary Patek Philippe watches with already high estimates.

At Christie's, the "Rare Watches" auction in November 2025 was notably driven by a Royal Oak a unique perpetual calendar for the 150th anniversary of Audemars Piguet and by a Patek Philippe ref. 3970 platinum reaching nearly 1.4 million Swiss francs.

At the same time, Sotheby's and Antiquorum are setting records for historical references from Patek Philippe, FP Journe, and others. Vacheron Constantinconfirming that fine watchmaking is now treated as a segment in its own right within the art market.

The vintage watch: an art and an investment

Between 2016 and 2025, the price of this 1518 has increased from approximately 11 million Swiss francs (approximately 11.8 million euros) to 14.19 million Swiss francs (15.2 million euros), i.e. an increase of close to 29 to 30% in ten years. All costs aside, this progression illustrates the ability of certain iconic models, supported by global demand, to withstand economic cycles and generate significant capital gains.

For the 2016 buyer, the gross profit of €3.4 million confirms that Patek Philippe's rarest watches can behave like true works of art, with a value curve closer to that of a masterpiece painting than a typical luxury item. For the brand, this kind of trajectory reinforces the narrative of deliberate inaccessibility. A Patek Philippe is not consumed, it is passed down. - resulting in a difference of several million between each owner...

Indeed, in the world of vintage watches, Patek Philippe occupies a unique position: its antique timepieces consistently top auction prices, whether they are chronographs from the 1940s, legendary references like the 2499, or one-of-a-kind pieces created for long-standing clients. This aura explains why the Maison has become the secondary market barometer, each record marking a strong signal for the entire collectible watch industry.

The trajectory of the steel 1518 encapsulates the dual status of the vintage watch: a cultural object, a witness to an era, but also a financial asset for discerning collectors. Production rarity, historical significance, state of preservation, and pedigree of the maison Sales figures become the key variables in an equation where the pleasure of watchmaking is combined with the logic of asset allocation.