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Take a look through some of the most expensive watch brands and the timepieces they’ve made this year
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Ranging from just over US $50,000 to the most expensive watches in the world, we talk about what makes them special
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This list includes pieces from A. Lange & Söhne, Breguet, Patek Philippe, Ulysse Nardin, MB&F, Richard Mille, Roger Dubuis, Grand Seiko, Vacheron Constantin, and Urwerk
In an industry as old as watchmaking, you might assume that by now they’ve all run out of ideas and there’s nothing left to make a new timepiece special. Well this year goes against that idea, and these 10 watches over US $50,000 prove that the watch world still has a lot to offer.
When you get a watch that costs over $50,000, it’s probably from one of most expensive watch brands. You’ll likely have your watch be part of a limited series, it will likely be made of the most precious materials, and it will likely be more complex than you thought possible.
Let’s take a look at some of the most special high-end watches that have come out this year:
No.10: The A. Lange & Söhne Lange 1 Time Zone ‘25th Anniversary’
Price: $52,800 (aprox.)
Birthdays are normally around the time you would get a special watch. This is probably one watch you’d want to buy for a milestone birthday. A. Lange & Söhne is one of the most expensive watch brands in the world and has some of the most expensive watch prices too. To celebrate the 25th birthday of the ‘Lange 1’ watch collection, the brand this year created 10 limited edition watches. This particular one is within the $50,000 range. The case is made of white gold, while the dial is made of solid silver, with a very complex finish to it called an ‘argente’ finish.
The watch itself shows the hours, minutes and seconds, as well as a second time zone dial, which is coupled with a cities ring to know which timezone you’re set to. It also has a quirky outsize date window, a day/night indicator for both dials, and a power reserve indicator. This blue watch is seriously special. You’ll feel seriously special to have one on your wrist too as only 25 exist in the world.
View the watch on the brand’s website here.
No.9: The Breguet Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Squelette 5395 in Rose Gold
Price: $218,000 (aprox.)
Breguet has been known in the past to make some of the most expensive watches in the world, this skeletonised addition is no exception. This watch is a masterpiece, tourbillons stand as perhaps the most complicated function you can put on a watch outside of a minute repeater. Tourbillons also usually take up a lot of room due to the cage they sit in, this means that most watch brands make very thick tourbillon watches. However, Breguet is not most watch brands, with this watch being only 7.70mm thick.
Though this watch only has the ability to tell the hours and minutes, like a regular watch, there is plenty to look at thanks to the sapphire crystal dial allowing the wearer to behold the entire inner workings. The tourbillon cage and balance can be admired, along with the mainspring barrel, and winding mechanisms. To own this is truly to own a piece of horological art.
View the watch on the brand’s website here.
No.8: The Patek Philippe 5078G Minute Repeater with Black Enamel Dial
Price: $350,000 (aprox.)
Patek Philippe’s minute repeater is one of the most expensive watches out there. Patek arguably make the perfect minute repeaters, few other brands can claim such a mastery over the process as Patek can. Minute repeaters essentially chime the time out to you on demand, much like an old grandfather clock, though you can’t really wear those on your wrist so this is a lot better.
This year, Patek expanded its minute repeater collection with this black enamel dial version, a dial which is finished with Patek flourishes as well as white gold. The small seconds sub-dial as well is of course white gold. To own a chiming watch like this is to truly own the pinnacle of watch making, hence why this is one of the most expensive watches in 2019.
View the watch on the brand’s website here
No.7: The MB&F LM Split Escapement in Ti Green with a Titanium Case
Price: $68,000 (aprox.)
MB&F, founded in 2005, is a newcomer among the hundred year old brands around it. But it’s relative youth aside, it is impressive and has created a piece as classic looking as the LM Split Escapement. Well, classic in most ways, apart from the fact that the functions of the watch literally float in the dial.
The Split Escapement lineup has been around since 2017 but this particular version in titanium and in green is a 2019 born watch. The collection itself was born out of a desire to create a more simplified version of the ‘Perpetual’ watches from the brand. It has three dials, one for the date, one for the power reserve and one for the time. The floaty, spinny mechanism in the middle is the balance wheel. This particular little brother watch is limited to just 33 pieces.
View the watch on the brand’s website here.
No.6: The Grand Seiko SBGZ001
Price: $76,000 (aprox.)
When you think of the most expensive watches in the world and you likely think of them as being Swiss, Grand Seiko, a Japanese brand is trying to change that. After looking at this particular watch brought out by Grand Seiko this year, you may begin to understand just how good the Japanese can be in the watch world. This watch stands as the flagship for Grand Seiko this year. The platinum case surrounds the silver dial which has been crafted to draw inspiration from the snow in the Shinshu region of Japan. It joins Grand Seiko’s tradition of using the ‘snowflake’ on its watches.
As standard with a Grand Seiko though, this watch is incredibly well made and good at keeping time. Using Seiko’s own Spring Drive, which is a kind of automatic and quartz hybrid, it has an accuracy of one second a day and a power reserve of 84 hours. It also only has a production of 30 pieces.
View the watch on the brand’s website here.
No.5: The Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante
Price: $50,250 (aprox.)
Think of some of the coolest car brands in history and you will almost always include Lamborghini on your list. It also turns out that if you team Lamborghini with a Swiss luxury watch maker like Roger Dubuis, you get one of the coolest watches in history. This was reinforced this year when the brand showed off the Excalibur Huracán Performante, born out of a love of Lamborghinis. The movement was actually developed with Lamborghini Squadra Corse, the subdivision of the automobile company focused on motorsports.
The Lamborghini-approved movement allows for the hours, minutes and seconds, a cool balance wheel and an impressive 60 hours power reserve. Lambo fans will be able to spot a number of touches in this skeletonised watch, the dial itself is in part inspired by the V10 engine of a Huracán, this watch is even more exclusive than that car though, with only 88 ever being made.
View the watch on the brand’s website here .
No.4: The Richard Mille RM 37-01 Automatic Cerise
Price: $150,000 (aprox.)
This watch is pretty sweet…This year Richard Mille, the eponymous brand gave the world the ‘Bonbon Collection’, a series of seriously drool-worthy watches. The ‘Cerise’ here makes up part of the Fruit line, with there also being a Sweets line. The watches are adorned with tiny candied fruit sculptures, with this particular watch also have sculptures of lollipops and gummy sweets. All the sculptures are made and placed by hand.
Besides the light-hearted theme of the watch, the RM is still a heavy hitter in terms of mechanics and complexity, what Richard Mille is known for. It has a special carbon and ceramic case, which is ridiculously durable and the watch shows the hour and minutes, along with the date. The watch is limited to just 30 pieces.
View the watch on the brand’s website here.
No.3: The Vacheron Constantin Overseas Perpetual Calendar Ultra Thin with Blue Dial
Price: $75,000 (aprox.)
Vacheron Constantin is one of the oldest watch brands in the world, and it’s clear to how the company has lasted so long if this was what it came up with just this year. Its latest ‘Perpetual’ in rose gold and blue is one of the most elegant watches to surface this year. The dark blue dial acts as a perfect backdrop to all the rose gold features and quirks on the watch.
Being a perpetual calendar of course, that list of quirks and features is quite extensive. Not only does it show the time, it shows the day, month and weekday, all accurate according to leap years. These things can calculate month durations and that pesky February month just with gears and cogs.
View the watch on the brand’s website here.
No.2: The Urwerk UR-105 CT ‘Maverick’ in Bronze
Price: $69,000 (aprox.)
Never has a name for a watch been more fitting, the Urwerk ‘Maverick’ is as unorthodox as you can get in the luxury Swiss world. This watch uses the brand’s famous satellite movement system, essentially the hour indicator sweeps along the minutes scale for an analogue-digital hybrid display of the time.
This year the brand expanded its ‘Maverick’ line with a bronze edition that is limited to just 22 pieces. Bronze is becoming more and more popular in the watch world, with plenty of luxury brands now picking up the unique material. There is in fact no better word for bronze in the watch world than “unique”, bear in mind that bronze oxidises over time, meaning that the material will change colour and tone over time, giving you a truly one of a kind watch. Urwerk is also the brand of watch that Tony Stark wears by the way…
View the watch on the brand’s website here
No.1: The Ulysse Nardin Marine Mega Yacht
Price: $310,000 (aprox.)
Finally on the list is a watch that has it all, it truly is mega. The ‘Marine Mega Yacht’ from Ulysse Nardin is one of the most complex and impressive watches to be released this year. Ulysse Nardin isn’t always one of the brands with the most expensive watch prices, but this ‘Mega’ watch is a bit different.
It has a flying tourbillon, a moon phase indicator, an indicator for tidal coefficients and volumes, a power reserve indicator fashioned into an anchor, and a platinum case. The entire watch is inspired by the aesthetic of a ship’s engine room. The watch dial itself seems 3D, with elements that remind the wearer of a luxury vessel poking out of the blue backdrop of the dial. This crazy 3D watch, full of marine inspiration and complex functions is limited to 30 pieces.
View the watch on the brand’s official website here
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