The ‘Bao Dai’, a Rolex that Vietnam’s last emperor bought during Geneva peace negotiations in 1954, was sold for $5 million on 13th
The bidding war lasted eight minutes among 10 bidders in the room and three on the phone.
The watch is one of the rarest Rolexes, one of three black-dial models known to exist with diamond hour markers.
The timepiece, completed in 1989 to commemorate Patek Philippe’s 150th anniversary, had been estimated at $6.4 million to $9.9 million.
Phillips spokesman Aurel Bacs said: “A watch that was originally discovered at Phillips in 2002, it was an absolute honour to offer the Rolex 6062 “Bao Dai” for the second time in my career.
