The most expensive pocket watch sold at auction is the Henry Graves Jr Supercomplication, a gold, double-dialled watch crafted by hand between 1925 and 1932 by Patek Philippe of Switzerland. On 11 November 2014, the watch was sold for 23,237,000 Swiss Francs (£15,154,312; $24,073,532) at Sotheby’s in Geneva, Switzerland.

The watch measures 74 mm (2.91 in) in diameter (the same width as a typical smartphone) and is 37 mm (1.45 in) thick, including the domed glass covers on the front and rear faces. Despite its relatively compact size, it weighs 536 grams (1 lb 2.9 oz), which gives an idea of how densely packed the internal mechanisms are. It was sold in its original tulipwood box, inlaid with a mother-of-pearl panel featuring the arms of Henry Graves Jr (1868–1953) – the American banker who commissioned the piece in 1925.

The name of the piece is a reference to Graves’ desire to have the most “complicated” watch in the world. (In horogical terminology, a “complication” is any feature that a mechanical timepiece can perform in addition to telling the time. Common complications include calendars, phase-of-the-moon displays and stopwatch functions.)

The Supercomplication required three years of study in astronomy, mathematics and precision mechanics before a viable design could be finalized. The enormously elaborate mechanism uses 900 individual parts including 430 screws, 110 wheels, 120 various movable parts and 70 jeweled bearings. It took the artisans at Patek-Phillippe – assisted by several other prominent Swiss watchmakers acting as sub-contractors – more than five years to assemble the watch, finally delivering it to Graves on 19 Jan 1933.

The 24 “complications” of the watch include a star chart (calibrated to show the night sky over Graves’ Manhattan apartment on any given night) and a multi-year calendar that will be accurate until the year 2100, as well as various alarm and stopwatch functions. This number of complications remained unbeaten until 1989, when Patek-Philippe released the 33-complication “Calibre 89”. It remains, however, the most complicated watch to have been made without the assistance of computers.

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History of Auctioneering

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Most expensive pie sold at auction

The most expensive pie sold at auction was bought for $15,000 CAD ($11,068 USD / £8,730), by the Hometown Family Pharmacy (Canada), in Ontario, Canada, on 31 August 2023.

The pie was sold at the Harrow Fair 2023 fundraiser event in Ontario, Canada and was purchased by the Hometown Family Pharmacy to honour their late co-owner Lonie Kady by raising money in support of a children’s centre.

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Most expensive car sold at auction

The most expensive car sold at auction is a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe, which sold for $142,769,250 (£115.1 million; €135.1 million) including premium and was auctioned by Sotheby’s in Stuttgart, Germany, on 5 May 2022.

The Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe, of which, only 2 models have been created by the German manufacturer, was sold at a ‘secret auction’ at the manufacturer’s brand museum in Suttgart. The auction was brokered by Sotheby’s and the winning bidder chose to stay anonymous.

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Most expensive kiss sold at auction

In August 2003, Joni Rimm (USA) paid $50,000 (£31,000) at a charity auction for the privilege of one kiss with Hollywood actress Sharon Stone. Sharon auctioned the kiss in aid of Project Angel Foods – a Los Angeles based charity providing free meals for people with HIV and AIDS.

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Most expensive sandals sold at auction

The most expensive sandals sold at auction is $218,00 (£184,765) and was achieved by Steve Jobs’s Birkenstock sandals, worn in the 1970s and 1980s, which was sold at Julien’s Auction, in Beverly Hills, California, USA, on 13 November 2022. The auction house predicted to sell the sandals for $60,000, but the final sale price with an accompanying NFT was $218,750.

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Source: https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/726530-most-expensive-sandals-sold-at-auction


Most expensive glove sold at auction

The most expensive glove sold at auction was sold for $420,000 (£267,879) and was bought by Ponte 16 Resort (China) in New York, New York, USA, on 21 November 2009. The glove belonged to Michael Jackson and is now on display at the MJ Gallery at Ponte 16 in Macau, China. The auction was conducted by Julien’s Auctions (USA) at the Hard Rock Cafe at Times Square in Manhattan.

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Most expensive motorcycle sold at auction

The most expensive motorcycle ever sold at auction is the “Captain America” Harley-Davidson Panhead, ridden by Peter Fonda’s character Wyatt in Easy Rider (USA, 1969). It was sold as part of an auction of Hollywood entertainment memorabilia in Los Angeles, California, USA, on 18 October 2014, for US$1.35 million (approximately £836,000 at the time).

With its distinctive stars-and-stripes tear-drop fuel tank, chrome pipe work and chopper forks and handle bars, the bike was custom-built by bike builders Cliff Vaughs and Ben Hardy, based on design suggestions by Fonda himself.

Although one of several made for filming, the bike sold at auction is believed to be the only one surviving today.

According to the auction catalogue text, the bike was restored by actor Dan Haggerty (famous for acting in 1974’s The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams) before selling to collector Michael Eisenberg, who in turn sold it at the 2014 Los Angeles auction.

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Most expensive horse sold at auction

The highest price paid for a thoroughbred race horse at public auction is $16 million (then £9.1 million) for a two-year-old, then unnamed colt, who had yet to even race. The Forestry colt was bought through an agent, Demi O’Byrne (Ireland), in the auction held at Calder Race Course, Florida, USA on 28 February 2006.

The bay colt, (with a white blaze) was bred in Florida, USA and sold at auction the year before (July 2005) for $425,000 (then £244,000).

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Most expensive brioche sold at auction

A brioche was sold at auction at the Reve d’un Soir event in aid of Kids, London, UK for £4000 ($7,838) to Lady Aliai Forte (UK) on 1 February 2007.

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Most expensive cello sold at auction

The highest ever auction price for a violon cello is £;682,000 ($ 1,217,711) paid at Sothebys, London, UK on 22 June 1988 for a Stradivarius known as The Cholmondeley, which was made in Cremona, Italy c. 1698.

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Most expensive photograph sold at auction

The most expensive photograph sold at auction is Le Violon d’Ingres (1924) by Man Ray (USA), which sold for $12,412,500 (£10,156,156 / €11,939,832), on 14 May 2022.

The black and white image overlays a violin and a woman’s naked body. It was sold by Christie’s auction house and greatly surpassed its expected sale price of $5-7m.

The item had previously belonged to art collectors Rosalind Gersten Jacobs and Melvin Jacobs.

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Source: https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/most-expensive-photograph-sold-at-auction


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