A lot can be said about a person by looking at their horological picks. In 2024, luxury watches are one of the most fundamental status symbols in the world, and as such, they sure are getting expensive with every passing day.
From using the rays of the sun to tell the hour of the day, to employing complex mechanical movements for maintaining accuracy up to 1/100th of a second, the instruments of timekeeping have come a long way. Similarly, the definition of luxury watches has evolved. Nowadays, fitting a watch with shiny diamond bits or giving it a gold case is a pretty ordinary sight. Hence, watchmakers are faced with an uphill task when designing premium timepieces.
But exactly how much do you need to shell out for acquiring the most exorbitant timepieces? And why do these models come with such mind-boggling price tags?
Join us as we walk you through a curation of the most expensive watches in the world in 2024.
Price: USD 55 million
The top spot in this list of the most expensive watches in the world has been reserved for this timepiece since 2014. Crafted by British jeweller Graff Diamonds, the Hallucination is more than just a watch — it is an exhibition of extravagance. The watch, nay, the work of art was ideated by Laurence Graff, the chairman of Graff Diamonds.
Fitted with an assortment of 110-carat multi-coloured diamonds on a platinum bracelet, the timepiece is a confluence of high fashion and watchmaking. The colourful diamonds, with their various cuts, create a stunning visual spectacle on the wearer’s wrist, one which is unlikely to fail in drawing the attention of the onlookers. This timepiece truly deserves the title of the most expensive watch ever sold.
Price: USD 40 million
If the Hallucination was not enough, Graff Diamonds gave birth to the Fascination in 2015. The British label, known for its expertise in procuring and refining some of the world’s most exquisite diamonds, crafted yet another dazzling timepiece which stands out in the crowd of premium luxury watches.
With 152.96 carats of white diamond forming the entire body of the watch, it can be sported as a bracelet. A rare 38.13-carat pear-shaped white diamond serves as the central dial. And that is not all — the pear-shaped diamond is detachable and can be worn as a ring, should you need to complete a look adorned with diamond jewellery.
Price: USD 31 million
With a rich heritage of timekeeping, Patek Philippe is renowned in the world of horology for crafting some of the most expensive watches. And the Grandmaster Chime is the cream of their vast collection.
What makes the timepiece different from the rest is its dual-dial feature. The front and rear dials can be switched by using reversible lugs. Both the dials fashion blue opaline, with gold-applied numerals and 18K solid gold dial plates.
In addition, the watch has five distinct chiming modes, an acoustic alarm, and a date repeater. The case is made of white gold, and an alligator leather strap completes the opulent look of the watch. However, it is the exclusivity of the timepiece that draws horologists towards it — only seven pieces have ever been produced of this model.
Price: USD 30 million
This watch has a lot of history attached to its name. Commissioned by an admirer of French Queen Marie-Antoinette, this timepiece was meticulously crafted by Abraham-Louis Breguet over a span of — wait for it — 40 years. The saga unfolded with Marie-Antoinette’s tragic execution even before the watch was completed.
Many in the horology fraternity have called this watch ‘a poem in clockwork’. It features an array of 24 complications, a perpetual calendar, a minute repeater and a Westminster chime — possibly every functional element you could ever imagine from the late 19th century.
Even in 2024, the timepiece rightfully deserves its place in the ranks of the most expensive watches in the world.
Price: USD 26 million
A watchmaker renowned for its masterful craftsmanship, Jaegar-LeCoultre made this timepiece as a gift for Queen Elizabeth II, celebrating the milestone of her 60-year reign in 2012.
The Joaillerie 101 Manchette sports a bracelet made of white gold adorned with 576 diamonds and 11 onyx gemstones. The clock’s face is made of sapphire glass and has a sleek hand-wound mechanism.
In addition, the watch houses the miniature calibre 101 movement, recognized as one of the tiniest mechanical movements in the world.
Price: USD 25 million
The Chopard 201-Carat Watch looks more like a large chunk of diamond than a timepiece. And rightly so, for it is fitted with a staggering 874 diamonds worth 201 carats, as the name suggests. Many watch aficionados and horologists look at this model as the magnum opus of the Swiss watchmaker Karl Scheufele II.
However, the watch is more than the dazzling sparkle of the diamonds it is adorned with. When you press the spring-loaded mechanism, three heart-shaped diamonds open like flower petals and reveal the pavé-set watch face. The three diamonds are as follows: a 15-carat pink diamond, a 12-carat blue diamond and an 11-carat white diamond.
Each diamond is handpicked to ensure fine quality, making the Chopard 201-Carat Watch a true masterpiece and a worthy inclusion in the curation of the most expensive watches in the world in 2024.
Price: USD 24 million
Now this is a watch that truly lives up to its name. The Patek Philippe Henry Graves Supercomplication is one of the most complicated watches ever made. Commissioned by American banker Henry Graves Jr in the early 20th century, the watch offers an array of astronomical functions. It includes a calendar, a minute repeater with Westminster Chimes, details on sunrise and sunset times, and a celestial chart that mirrors the night sky as seen from Graves’ house in New York.
Crafted over several years, the timepiece comes with a gold case and a two-tone silver dial. This watch is a true example of masterful craftsmanship and is one of the most coveted and sought-after models in the world of horology.
Price: USD 18 million
This Jacob & Co. timepiece earned the moniker ‘Billionaire Watch’ for all the right reasons — with 189 carats of Ashoka diamonds adorning the entire body of the watch, how can we say otherwise? The structure of the watch’s body has been crafted in white silver, and a rose-cut jewel on the crown serves as the proverbial cherry on top.
However, this timepiece is revered not just for its outwardly looks. The watch’s skeleton face reveals the intricate hand-crafted tourbillion movement which comprises 167 elements and 18 jewels. Additionally, the movement of the watch offers a power reserve of 72 hours.
It is a timepiece worthy of being any billionaire’s choice.
Price: USD 17.6 million
This vintage Rolex watch, with its cultural significance, has become an icon in the world of luxury watches. Known for its distinct art-deco style, this model of Rolex Daytona was commissioned by Paul Newman’s wife, Joanne Woodward, in 1968. The actor was renowned for his love for exquisite timepieces and racing cars, and the same is reflected by the engraving on the watch that reads “Drive Carefully Me” (Woodward added this engraving to the watch).
The contrasting colours of the watch’s dials and sub-dials distinguish it from other Rolex Daytona models. This timepiece is a testament to Newman and Woodward’s love and is one of the most sought-after collectibles in the world.
With a price tag in excess of USD 15 million, the watch deserves its place in this list of the most expensive ones in 2024.
Price: USD 11.1 million
In a world of rose gold and diamond watches, Patek Philippe showed by example how to craft a premium timepiece with stainless steel, a material so often found even in a five-dollar watch. Of course, the luxury watchmaker made use of the highest grade stainless steel available in the world, but it is its design that bestows the watch with such a high value.
Reference 1518 marked a significant chapter in Patek Philippe’s history — it ushered in a renaissance of sorts as the watchmaker revisited its foundational principles of finding a perfect mix of innovation and tradition. This watch is one of the first chronograph watches made by Patek Philippe. It also featured a subdial dedicated to the details of sunrise and sunset times.
Price: USD 8 million
Vacheron Constantin took the complications in watches to a different level altogether with its 57260 model. The timepiece features two dials and houses a total of 57 complications. It took around eight years and some of the watchmaker’s most brilliant craftsmen to create the iconic watch.
Made of solid 18-carat white gold, the piece has a three-position winding crown with a corresponding indication window on the case band. A co-axial button in the crown controls the start/stop and reset functions of the double retrograde chronograph.
Price: USD 5.7 million
The inclusion of the manual-winding chronograph in the Patek Philippe Reference 1527 is what drew luxury watch connoisseurs to this timepiece. With a platinum case plated with yellow gold, the watch sports a formal, elegant look.
The silver-matte dial of the watch, with Arabic numerals in gold, includes a five-minute division. It also includes three auxiliary dials and a tachymeter scale around the rim. The watch keeps track of time using a 30-minute register.
Price: USD 5 million
If we talk of sophistication, very few can match the Hublot Big Bang Diamond Tourbillion Limited Edition. This is an exquisite timepiece, a work of art that spells opulence from every angle.
The watch features over 1,200 diamonds in its diamond-encrusted case. Among these gleaming stones are six emerald-cut diamonds of around three carats each. This timepiece was crafted over 14 months by 12 master cutters and five stone cutters. The result was an exclusive model that etched its name in the ranks of the most expensive watches in the world, even in 2024.
Interestingly, the Hublot Big Bang Diamond Tourbillion Limited Edition was gifted to American rapper Jay-Z on his 43rd birthday by his wife, pop culture sensation Beyonce.
Price: USD 4.6 million
If Omega can boast a ‘Moonwatch’ collection based on the Speedmaster worn by astronauts Neil Armstrong and Eugene ‘Buzz’ Aldrin on the Apollo 11 mission, Louis Moinet can also name its Meteoris Watch as the ‘Spacewatch’. And he will be completely justified in doing so — the timepiece actually contains fragments of space!
Crafted by Les Ateliers Louis Moinet, the watch has fragments from celestial bodies like the moon, Mars and asteroids embedded in its body. The timepiece, with such rare elements from the vast expanse of the cosmos, embodies exclusivity and is most definitely one of the most expensive and sought-after watches, even in 2024.
Price: USD 3.5 million
Summing up the list of the most expensive watches in the world in 2024 is an exhibition of diamonds in the form of the Piaget Emperador Temple. The main dial of the watch sports one emerald-cut diamond, 207 baguette-cut diamonds and 481 brilliant-cut diamonds. As many as 360 diamonds are set on the bracelet of the watch.
However, the main attraction of the timepiece lies in the secret watch-face below the primary one. This hidden piece is adorned with 11 baguette-cut diamonds and 161 brilliant-cut diamonds. With a total of 1,211 diamonds on the timepiece, it truly is a diamond extravaganza.
– Which is the most expensive watch in the world in 2024?
With a price tag of USD 55 million, the Graff Diamonds Hallucination is the most expensive watch in the world in 2024.
(Main image: Patek Philippe and Louis Moinet; Featured image: Piaget)
This story first appeared on Augustman Singapore.
Uddipta writes about sports and watches besides occasionally venturing into the world of automobiles and technology. He was associated with the Indian Express in the capacity of a sub-editor at their Lifestyle ..Read More
