Rolex Watch

Rolex Watch Breaks Record

Most Expensive Rolex Watch Sold at Auction

Most Expensive Rolex Watch Sold at Auction

Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona ($17.8 million)

Most expensive Rolex watch sold Auction was Paul Newman’s (Paul Newman Rolex Daytona). Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona remained absent for three decades. But in 2016, when it resurfaced as a guest of honor. The vintage watch fanatics couldn’t believe that it was happening. The level of excitement could be measured when the bidding hammer stopped after 12 minutes of aggressive bidding by like-minded watch lovers who wanted to lay their hands on the magnificence.

This happened in October 2019 at Phillips’ inaugural New York auction. How did the auction end so soon? Well, credit goes to an anonymous voice on the end of a phone who became the proud owner of the most wanted timepiece to be made public in a generation. The owner made a whopping offer of $15.5 million, which transformed the worth of the white whale of the horological world, declaring it to be the most expensive Rolex ever sold. The Buyer’s Premium added turned into a 17.8 million dollars sale.

Paul Newman’s (Paul Newman Daytona)

If you are into watches, you will be spellbound to know that Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona broke the former record for the most expensive Rolex ever sold. It was formerly held at the bargain basement Bao Dai moon phase for six months.

Are you curious to know more about its owner? Then, allow us to shed some light there. The Rolex was brought as a gift by Paul Newman’s wife Joanne Woodward, who presented the watch to her husband to encourage the start of his professional racing career on a good note.

However, Newman did not forget to fulfill his responsibility as a father because instead of keeping the watch, he gave it away to James Cox in 1984, who was his daughter Nell’s boyfriend. What did the boy do that compelled the big man to give him the watch? The answer was simple and thoughtful. The boy didn’t have a watch of his own; hence, Newman made his daughter’s love happy.

Cox’s happiness knew no boundaries. The young man wore the horological Holy Grail in blissful ignorance. He honored its prominence for thirty years before a clued-up collector spotted the matchless time-teller on his wrist and failed to take his eyes off the beauty.

With time, Cox inherited and became the treasurer of the Nell Newman Foundation. It was a charity established by Nell, Daddy’s dearest, to continue her father’s extensive benevolent legacy. The foundation received vast amounts of donations that further added to the proceeds of the sale of the Daytona. And the organization will run on those funds.

It would be an incredible understatement to say the auction was highly anticipated. The Rolex was a watch whose existence was based on rumors. This Rolex model wore the crown of launching the vintage market as we know it today and the most sought-after variant because almost everyone wanted to grab the accessory once possessed by the man who gave it its title – perhaps the bidders shouldn’t have been so surprised at the news of the auction as someone financially stable eventually was going to wear it.

Even so, the amount of $17.8 million looks steep for the time being, but like every item, this watch will also be the price to beat for some time. We can assume this will happen when, maybe, Paul Newman’s anonymous owner decides to place it on auction again.