Fine watches soar at weekend auctions in Geneva

By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA (Reuters) - Fine watches soared above their estimates at sales in Geneva, reflecting collectors' strong demand for exceptional pieces, auction houses said on Monday.

A pair of Patek Philippe wristwatches sold for a combined $7.3 million, each setting world records after doubling the low-end of their estimate, Christie's said.

One of them, a 1949 steel timepiece that had belonged to the late wealthy American businessman and sportsman Briggs Swift Cunningham II, fetched $4.016 million -- making it the second most expensive watch ever sold at auction, it said.

The buyer was an unnamed Swiss private museum.

"It's also the most expensive steel watch ever sold. With today's turbulent stock markets, it is an extraordinary price, demonstrating the strength of the market for fine watches," Aurel Bacs, co-director of Christie's international watch department, told Reuters after Monday's sale.

Cunningham, who died in 2003 at the age of 96, was one of the richest men in America in his day, Christie's said. An avid car racer he also won the America's Cup in 1958.

A second Patek Philippe, a 1954 platinum perpetual calendar wristwatch -- which recently emerged after spending more than half a century in a family safe -- netted $3.1 million.

"It never saw the light of day. The original owner's nephew didn't realize what he had," Bacs said. It was bought by a European collector who chose to remain anonymous.