The most expensive FP Journe watch ever sold at Phillips

The most expensive FP Journe watch ever sold was just auctioned off at Phillips for a whopping $8.3 million. And it breaks Philippe Dufour’s previous record as the most expensive watch by an independent watchmaker ever sold at auction.

If the Phillips auction “Reloaded: The Rebirth of Mechanical Watchmaking, 1980-1999” in Geneva is any indication, the hype in the watch world is not dead yet. FP Journe today cemented its status as a must-have collector’s favorite with the blockbuster auction, which set a new record for the watch manufacturer. According to reports, the opening offer started at a staggering $5 million, while the original estimate was over 2,000,000 CHF or approximately $2,360,000.

Previously, the most expensive watch Journe has ever sold was the FFC Blue, made in collaboration with Hollywood director Francis Ford Coppola for the Only Watch charity auction in 2021, which was purchased for approximately $4.9 million. It also surpasses Journe’s contemporary Philippe Dufour (a fellow master of modern independent watchmaking), who previously held the record for the most expensive watch ever sold by an indie, when his Grande et Petite Sonnerie watch sold at A Collected Man for 7.63 million US dollars was sold.

So what makes the FP Journe Tourbillon Souverain à Remontoire d’Egalité worth CHF 7,320,000 (approximately $8,369,834 at current exchange rates)? The 38mm hand-wound platinum watch with an 18-karat movement is the watch with which Journe began his career as a respected independent manufacturer, modern craftsman and engineer, following in the footsteps of long-gone watchmaking legends such as Abraham-Louis Breguet and Antide Janvier. Launched in 1999 as a 20-part edition Souscript (Subscription) set, the watch is engraved 15/93; It is the second wristwatch that François-Paul Journe ever made and sold. Firsts and records aside, what’s fascinating about this timepiece is that it improves on Breguet’s tourbillon system by adding one remontoire– a constant force mechanism that delivers the same amount of energy regardless of the winding level of the mainspring to ensure even greater accuracy.

In a fall 2016 issue of FP Journ[al]a print newsletter from the brand, Journe further explained his intention: “In 1991, I began a new adventure. I realized (late, I know…) that it’s easier to wear a wristwatch than a pocket watch. This is how the first tourbillon wristwatch was created. And I didn’t want to repeat my first sentence (if you know me, you know that I hate copying, it’s just boring doing the same thing over and over again), but I wanted to bring out another sentence, this time with a Remontoir d’Egalite. I take this as a compliment (or at least an acknowledgment) that we now hear many watchmakers talking about it Force Constante (constant force mechanism).”

The original prototype of the watch will of course remain in the watchmaker’s private collection. This watch is one of two later creations from 1993 – the other is engraved 16/93. They would serve as the foundation for the company’s future DNA: a 38mm case size, gold dials and offset displays. The secret of Journe is the ability to innovate in both design and function while looking modern and traditional – a formula often sought but rarely achieved in today’s watchmaking.

The icing on the cake of this beauty is that it is one of only three watches entirely handcrafted by Journe himself. For those who truly understand watchmaking, that alone is enough to send this watch into the stratosphere, but the market’s recognition of its $8.3 million worth during his lifetime is a significant one indeed Confirmation for Journe.