Palm Beach real estate developer Todd Michael Glaser is parting with a collection of high-end watches from his personal inventory as part of a Christie’s auction June 12 in New York.
The collection, which will be featured in Christie’s “Important Watches” sale at Rockefeller Center, includes a 27-piece selection of timepieces from luxury makers, including Patek Philippe, Rolex and Cartier.
According to Christie’s, the watches are expected to fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Glaser, known for developing, remodeling and restoring houses in Palm Beach and Miami Beach, spent more than 25 years building the collection. His relationship with watches is tied to his family, he said. He even sets his watches 10 minutes fast so he is never late.
“Time was always something that was important to me and my family,” he told the Daily News.
Raised in Miami Beach, Glaser began collecting watches as a teenager and has bought and sold several collections in the decades since.
“Over the years, I’ve sold my collection twice,” he said. “This is the third collection I’ve sold. I buy, I accumulate. They go up. And then each time I bought a new collection, I usually step up. So this collection is the best I’ve had yet.”
Among the highlights of the timepieces up for bid is a platinum Patek Philippe perpetual calendar chronograph with a salmon dial, estimated to sell for between $120,000 and $220,000.
Other featured pieces include a rare platinum Patek Philippe chronograph with a blue cloud dial; a platinum Cartier Tank Cintrée with red Arabic numerals; and a platinum Rolex automatic wristwatch with a black onyx dial and bracelet.
Glaser said he decided to sell the collection because demand for rare vintage watches has continued to grow among younger collectors. He also sees a shift in the collector market toward older, more distinctive pieces.
“You want to be able to stand out,” said Glazer, who also collects vintage and rare cars. “The old-car market is the same. A lot of these guys that just sell imported cars right now are in their 70s, and the guys that are buying them are in their 40s and 50s. They don’t want the Porsches from the (1990s). They want the ’60s and ’50s Ferraris and Mercedes.”
Glazer said he believes the market for rare and vintage watches will continue to strengthen. He pointed to several recent watch auctions that saw record-breaking prices for especially rare timepices.
“I always have a good sense of timing,” Glaser said. “There are some watches I want to buy, and if I don’t do something now, I believe the market’s going to go up.”
Among his favorite pieces in the sale is the Cartier Tank Cintrée with red Arabic numerals, which he described as unique.
“There’s only one in the world,” he said. “It’s beautiful.”
Prospective buyers can bid online, by telephone, through absentee bids or in person. Details about the auction are available at Christies.com by clicking on the “Auctions” tab on the homepage and searching for the “Important Watches” event.
The collection also will be available for public viewing at Christie’s Rockefeller Center galleries at 20 Rockefeller Plaza from June 5-11.
Jodie Wagner is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at jwagner@pbdailynews.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach developer puts rare watches up for bid at Christie’s
Reporting by Jodie Wagner, Palm Beach Daily News / Palm Beach Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Jodie Wagner, Palm Beach Daily News | USA TODAY Network
