There was further confirmation of the rapid evolution of independent watch values with several records being set at the Phillips Geneva Watch Auction XIV on the 5th November 2021, including a new British record being achieved by one of Roger’s more recent pieces.
12 November, 2021The Series 2 is one of Roger’s more recent pieces, being made in 2016. Rarity is a given for all Roger’s pieces, given their extremely limited production, but this Series 2 is also one of only five pink gold watches that he made with an engraved dial and silver chapters. Amongst these five, it’s only one of two which Roger made with an engraved barrel and balance cock.
As a latest iteration of the Series 2 watches, this piece houses Roger’s single-wheel evolution of the Daniels co-axial escapement. It was therefore a rare opportunity to acquire one of Roger’s current watches after the recent closing of his order book.
When the hammer came down, the watch achieved $715,478, tripling its pre-sale high estimate and representing a record price for any piece by the British watchmaker. In doing so, it beat the previ-ous record held by Roger from earlier this year.
This exceptional price has already generated huge anticipation for a Roger W. Smith Series 1 which will come up for auction at Phillips 2021 New York Watch Auction, 11-12 December 2021. The piece, made by Roger in 2019, was the first of this series to be completed and is a classic, round, time-only watch in red gold with a silver dial.
The Series 1 watch is to be auctioned alongside a George Daniels piece known as the ‘Edward Hornby Tourbillon Pocket Watch’. This is the fourth pocket watch that George made out the 23 he produced during his lifetime.
It’s an exceptional moment for watches by both Roger and his great mentor to be sold at the same auction. Significantly, this is also the first time Phillips New York has offered any British timepieces for sale and it is no surprise that they are already being described as the ‘star lots’…