An exceptional Movado watch at auction

On November 3, 2023, a rare find will be honored and then sold under the gavel of Maître Béral at Hôtel Drouot. This exceptional Movado Watch comes from a Parisian collection.

This lot has been authenticated by the Auctie's team and our expert in luxury watches and clocks, Nicolas Amsellem.

To make an appointment to preview this watch, click-here.

A nugget from Movado

The house has collaborated extensively with Taubert & Fils, a supplier specializing in the manufacture of watch cases. The watch presented by Auctie's has a type 8 case, the rarest type, with no bezel and flat lugs. These criteria make it an absolutely unique model in jewelry design.

The history of Movado   

Movado is an American watchmaker founded in Switzerland by Achille Ditisheim in 1887. His name is remembered today, but his brothers were also involved in the company. The company owes its initial success to pocket watches, which are also available as button watches, bag watches and cocktail watches. Most were rectangular in shape, with the dial fully protected by a case. In the early 20th century, Movado began producing wristwatches, an accessory originally worn by women. They made a name for themselves as soon as they hit the market.

Movado soon called on and collaborated with Taubert & Fils, who shortly afterwards bought the Borgel factory, famous for its waterproof, protected watches for soldiers. In the 1930s, the Acvatic model was created. Some time later, the watchmaking house joined forces with the company Les Fils de Louis-Élysée Piguet with the aim of creating a chronograph model that could use the bases of the already existing Movado models.

Exceptional piece from the Movado  house: chronograph reference 19008

The Movado made around 1940 presented for sale in early November is a steel chronograph men's wristwatch, estimated at €15,000-20,000. The black dial elegantly bears silver lettering that reads " Movado " and " Fab. Suisse ". The caseback is signed " Movado " and " FB ". The movement is mechanical and hand-wound. With its 35-millimeter diameter and functional movement, the Movado chronograph presents itself as an exceptional collector's piece, acquired by a collector in the 1980s that is sure to shake up current auction records.

The originality of this piece lies above all in its dial, similar in some respects to that of Movado chronographs referenced 19005. The glossy black creates different scales with the silver lettering, while hinting at tachymetry at the end of the circular dial, forming a tourbillon or snail. Movado's signature sword-shaped hands and 60-minute totalizer hand only reinforce the certainty of its authenticity.

Dating and authenticity

The dating and authenticity of this piece are established in this notice from the elements we have at our disposal, leading us to the conclusion of a high probability for a 1940 production in the workshops of the Movado house.

The success of Movado watches on the auction market  

Auctions are today a preferred means for collectors to find the watches they have sometimes been looking for for years. The company produced a wide variety of models during the 20th century and still today, which are no longer marketed and very difficult to acquire on the second-hand market, where the risk of counterfeiting is always present.

The watch presented by Auctie's on November 3, 2023 has every chance of breaking auction records for a Movado watch.

Acknowledgements

We would especially like to thank our seller for the invaluable details provided on the provenance and history of this watch, but also our expert, Nicolas Amsellem, for his indispensable information, as well as the photographer for this piece, Valentin Lam.