Is Breguet's Classique Souscription 2025 The Best Watch Of The Year?
All the most important news, recent releases, and opinions about the watch industry.
In The News
Auction Recap
Before I get to the biggest news of the week – the GPHG awards – I wanted to briefly follow up on my previous post on Phillips Watches: Decade One (2015–2025) auction.
To no one’s surprise, the top lot of the auction, the stainless steel Patek Philippe ref. 1518, sold for CHF14,190,000 (~AU$27,400,000), setting a new record for the highest price ever paid for a Patek Philippe wristwatch in the process. It has been a big couple of weeks for steel ref. 1518s, with Monaco Legend Group’s Davide Parmegiani also selling an example for an undisclosed price (of the four known examples of steel ref. 1518s, Phillips sold the first example, while Parmegiani sold the third).
With two ref. 1518s on the market at the same time, there was plenty of discussion about the reference online, with many agreeing that Parmegiani’s example was in slightly better condition. This was, in part, fueled by accusations made by Jose Pereztroika, the well-known watch expert and critic of auction houses, that the example sold by Phillips was misrepresented when the lot essay expressed it had a “raised black hard enamel signature,” and that it was “free of damage or harsh restoration”.
Did this widely discussed criticism impact the eventual price?
It’s hard to say for sure, but it obviously would have been a factor. In saying that, it’s also worth remembering that the number of people in the market for a $20 million+ watch is extremely small, Phillips is in the game of selling its watches (and therefore, some embellishment in the lot essay isn’t totally surprising), and the level of knowledge on the subject of vintage watch dial restoration/preservation isn’t particularly deep across the collecting community (meaning few have authoratative opinions to offer on the subject).
Tony Traina wrote an excellent post on his Substack, Unpolished, about the subject (with the benefit of having spent 45 minutes with Phillips ref. 1518 with the dial crystal removed) and summed it up nicely when he said, “I’m comfortable to say: I don’t fully understand the puzzle.”
Beyond the record-breaking ref. 1518, the two Patek Philippe ref. 3424 “Gilbert Albert” lots I previously mentioned performed very well, with the yellow gold example hammering for CHF241,300 (~AU$465,500) against an estimate of CHF40,000 - 80,000 and the diamond-set platinum example selling for CHF812,800 (~AU$1,568,000) against an estimate of CHF100,000 - 200,000. If those results are anything to go by, the most well-known collector of Gilbert Albert-designed Pateks, Roni Madhvani, is sitting on a couple of million dollars’ worth of watches.
Finally, two Seikos that appeared in the same auction (Phillips has sold a total of 13 watches from Seiko ever) performed extremely well. The Seiko Ref. 4520-8020 Astronomical Observatory Chronometer sold for CHF101,600 (~AU$200,000) against an estimate of CHF15,000 - 30,000, while the Seiko Ref. 6139-6010 achieved CHF15,240 (~AU$29,400) against an estimate of CHF3,000 - 6,000. As far as I can find, this Astronomical Observatory Chronometer is the most expensive Seiko ever sold at auction.
GPHG Winners
Now moving on to the GPHG news, where prizes were handed out at the awards ceremony in Geneva at the end of last week.
The top prize was won by Breguet, with the Classique Souscription 2025 claiming the “Aiguille d’Or” Grand Prix award. It’s more than a worthy winner, in my opinion, after handling the watch in Singapore recently. In Singapore, I also had the chance to interview Breguet’s CEO, Gregory Kissling, during which he explained the importance of Breguet’s early souscription watches.
“Without [Breguet’s original Souscription watches], we wouldn’t be sitting here today. The Souscription watches helped Breguet’s watchmaking survive after the French Revolution (Breguet famously made a watch for Marie Antoinette), because not only was he a brilliant watchmaker, but he was also a brilliant businessman, and he was the first to have the idea of what today we could call ‘crowdfunding’ for a project.”
As far as modern interpretations of historically significant watches go, Breguet’s release this year is a winner from every angle. The case is bang on at 40mm (10.8mm thick), the dial is exquisite, and the movement is very, very nicely finished. But beyond the specifics of the watch itself, it also represents an important step in the right direction for a watchmaker that has struggled somewhat in recent years. If the Classique Souscription 2025 is a sign of what’s to come from Breguet, it’s an exciting time to be a fan of the brand.
I’ll list the winners of all 15 categories below, but three other stand-out watches won their categories that deserve a nod.
Sports: Chopard Alpine Eagle Cadence 8HF
The Sports prize was won by the Chopard Alpine Eagle Cadence 8HF, which is the lightest version of the Alpine Eagle that Chopard has ever released, thanks to its ceramicised titanium case. It’s priced at $43,300.
Challenge: Dennison Natural Stone Tiger Eye in Gold
No other watch brand has been making more exciting, affordable watches than Dennison, which is why I was delighted to see it take out the win for the “Challenge” category of watches priced at or under CHF 3,000. Designed by Emmanuel Gueit (whom I recently interviewed for B.H. Magazine) and featuring a tiger’s eye stone dial, it’s an absolute bargain for $1,080.
Ladies’: Gérald Genta Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal
It’s been a treat watching the gradual revival of the Gérald Genta brand, and I was very happy to see the Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal win the Ladies’ watch prize this year. Cased in 3N yellow gold 3N with 137 fire opal gems individually screwed into the case, the dial is made from orange cornelian, and it nicely represents Genta’s unapologetic, creative flair when it came to watch design. The Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal is officially “Price On Request”; however, as a comparison, the Gentissima Oursin Black Onyx has an RRP of CHF29,000 (~AU$55,900).
Full GPHG Prize List:
Aiguille d’Or: Breguet Classique Souscription 2025
Men’s: Urban Jürgensen UJ-2: Double Wheel Natural Escapement
Men’s Complication: Bovet 1822 Récital 30
Ladies’ Complication: Chopard Imperiale Four Seasons
Time Only: Daniel Roth Extra Plat Rose Gold
Tourbillon: Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon
Chronograph: Angelus Chronographe Télémètre Yellow Gold
Sports: Chopard Alpine Eagle Cadence 8HF
Jewellery: Dior Montres La D de Dior Buisson Couture
Petite Aiguille: M.A.D. Editions M.A.D.2 Green
Challenge: Dennison Natural Stone Tiger Eye in Gold
Mechanical Exception: Greubel Forsey Nano Foudroyante
Artistic Crafts: Voutilainen 28GML SOYOU
Mechanical Clock: L’Epée 1839 Albatross L’Epée 1839 x MB&F
Horological Revelation Prize: Anton Suhanov, St. Petersburg Easter Egg Tourbillon Clock
Audicity Prize: Fam Al Hut Möbius
Chronometry Prize: Zenith G.F.J. Calibre 135
Special Jury Prize: Alain Dominique Perrin, Fondation Cartier
Factory Fresh
Independent watchmaker Czapek & Cie is probably best known for its Antarctique integrated bracelet sports watch, but that could change as the watchmaker just unveiled the all-new Time Jumper in celebration of its 10th anniversary.
Jump hour watches are firmly en vogue at the moment, with recent releases like the Cartier Tank à Guichets, Louis Vuitton Tambour Convergence, and Chopard L.U.C Quattro Spirit 25 Straw Marquetry Edition all offering their own takes on a mechanically powered “digital” display, but the Time Jumper delivers something different again, thanks to its half-hunter case that opens to reveal the movement beneath.
Powered by Czapek’s new in-house Calibre 10 with 60 hours of power reserve, it’s cased in 40.5mm of either stainless steel or 3N yellow gold and adds something novel to the growing line-up of jump hour watches that are available today. In stainless steel, it’s priced at CHF42,000 (~AU$81,000), while the 3N yellow gold version costs CHF64,000 (~AU$123,500).
Recommended Reading
Off the back of the ref. 1518 sale, Tony from Unpolished made his deep dive on the subject of enamel dials, titled, Engraved enamel: Why some dials never fade, free to read for everyone.
If you’re interested in the subject of how Patek Philippe produced its dials, what’s involved in restoring them, and what to look for when you’re trying to understand if a dial has been restored or not, this is an insightful read.
If you’re not already subscribed to Unpolished, it’s well worth adding to your horological media diet.
Thanks for reading this edition of The Inside Angle, and I’ll see you here next time.