Hong Kong’s secondary watch market is showing little sign of slowing. Phillips’ latest Hong Kong Watch Auction brought in over HK$403 million (US$51 million), with 293 of 294 lots sold. The total was up 90% from the equivalent sale last year and marked the highest ever achieved for a watch auction at Phillips Asia.
Eight watches crossed the US$1 million mark, and the sale set a string of new records for pieces including the Patek Philippe Ref. 5970R‑017 and Philippe Dufour’s Simplicity. The top lot was a Patek Philippe Ref. 2499 First Series in pink gold, which sold for HK$80.4 million (US$10.3 million) – not only a new record for the reference, but also the most expensive timepiece ever sold at auction in Asia.
Patek Philippe Ref. 2499 “The Pink First Series” was hammered at HK$66 million
Lot 941 | Patek Philippe | Ref. 2499 “The Pink First Series”, a well-preserved pink gold perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch with French calendar, moon phases, and case made by Vichet (Auction record for the Patek Philippe Ref. 2499 and for a timepiece sold in Asia)
Manufactured in 1951
Estimate: HK$24,000,000 - 48,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$66,000,000
Sold: HK$80,370,000 (US$10.3 million)
A Patek Philippe reference 2499 is a holy grail among watch connoisseurs. Successor to the now‑legendary Ref. 1518, the perpetual calendar chronograph was introduced in 1951 and is widely regarded as one of the most important complicated wristwatches ever made.
Over its 35‑year production run, only 349 examples of Ref. 2499 were made, with the first series produced in both yellow and pink gold. Pink‑gold pieces are vanishingly rare: only five are known on the market, and the watch sold in Hong Kong is one of just four first‑series examples in pink gold with the coveted Vichet case.
Made in 1951, imported into London in 1955 and sold in 1956, it carries both Swiss and British marks on the caseback, including the London “U” date letter and the “Ω” import mark for 18K gold. It is also the only known example stamped with British hallmarks.
Patek Philippe | Reference 2499, 2nd Series, Pink gold, retailed by Gobbi Milano | Sold: HK$60,265,000 (US$7.7 million), Sotheby's Hong Kong, 2022
Among the four iterations of Ref. 2499, the first series is both the rarest and the easiest to recognise. It is defined by square chronograph pushers, in contrast to the round pushers of later series.
Two casemakers supplied first‑series cases. The earliest examples, like this one, were made by Vichet. They have a slightly smaller 36.2 mm diameter, a flat caseback and sharply downturned, claw‑like lugs. After roughly two years, Patek Philippe switched to Wenger, which produced almost all remaining 2499 cases until 1985. Wenger cases are typically about 37.5 mm, featuring less markedly downturned lugs and a bombé caseback.
The previous auction record for the model stood at HK$60.3 million (US$7.7 million), set in 2022 at Sotheby's by a second-series pink gold example with a dial signed by Gobbi Milano.
Other Highlight Lots:
Lot 895 | F.P. Journe | Tourbillon Souverain, “Chine 2010 38”, a commemorative platinum 38mm diameter wristwatch with tourbillon regulator, deadbeat seconds, remontoir d’égalité, and power reserve indication
Manufactured circa 2010; one of a limited edition of 5 pieces made to commemorate the opening of the F.P. Journe Boutique in Beijing
Estimate: In excess of HK$7,800,000
Hammer Price: HK$
Sold: HK$32,965,000
Lot 1097 | Patek Philippe | Ref. 3448, Padellone “Tokyo White”, a white gold double-signed perpetual calendar wristwatch with “Topsider” signature and moon phases, retailed by Beyer
Manufactured in 1972
Estimate: HK$6,000,000 - 12,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$10,800,000
Sold: HK$13,716,000
Lot 1031 | Patek Philippe | Ref. 5970R-017, a unique and “brand-new” pink gold perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch with moon phases, 24-hour, leap year indication, special black luminous monogrammed dial, Breguet numeral at 12 o'clock, tachymetre scale (Auction record for the Patek Philippe Ref. 5970R-017)
Manufactured circa 2011, commissioned by American collector Michael Ovitz
Estimate: HK$4,000,000 - 8,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$10,100,000
Sold: HK$12,827,000
Lot 842 | F.P. Journe | Ref. T, Tourbillon Souverain, a pink gold tourbillon wristwatch with power reserve indication, remontoir d'égalité, pink gold dial, and brass movement
Manufactured circa 2003
Estimate: HK$2,400,000 - 4,800,000
Hammer Price: HK$8,850,000
Sold: HK$11,239,500
Lot 924 | Patek Philippe | Ref. 5970P-018, a platinum perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch with blue dial, Roman numerals at 12 o’clock, moon phases, 24-hour, leap year indication, additional solid caseback, and setting pin
Manufactured
Estimate: HK$3,500,000 - 7,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$8,200,000
Sold: HK$10,414,000
Lot 877 | Philippe Dufour | Simplicity in steel, the only known stainless steel wristwatch with grey guilloché dial, Breguet numerals, small seconds (Auction record for Simplicity in steel)
Manufactured circa 2020
Estimate: HK$2,800,000 - 5,600,000
Hammer Price: HK$7,450,000
Sold: HK$9,461,500
Lot 853 | Cartier | Ref. CRHPI01088, Crash Squelette No. 1, a “like-new” special edition platinum skeletonized asymmetrical wristwatch with diamond and ruby-set bezel, diamond-set crown, numbered 1
Manufactured circa 2017
Estimate: HK$1,000,000 - 2,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$7,250,000
Sold: HK$9,207,500
Auction Details:
Auction House: Phillips Hong Kong
Sale: The Hong Kong Watch Auction: XXII
Date: 31 May 2026
Number of Lots: 294
Sold: 293
Unsold: 1
Sale Rate: 99.6%
Sale Total: HK$403,792,890 (US$51.5 million)