A Phillips auction was held in New York, organized jointly with Bacs & Russo. One of the lots in the Racing Pulse session was the 1969 Heuer Monaco square watch, which appeared in the 1971 film Le Mans, on the wrist of racing driver Steve McQueen. It is known that immediately after filming, McQueen presented this watch to his personal mechanic Haig Oltounian, who kept the coveted trophy for all these 50 years. Provenance is confirmed by the engraving on the case back "To Haig Le Mans 1970".
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At the very beginning of trading, this lot was worth $ 200 thousand, and after seven minutes its price increased tenfold. As a result, the chronograph was sold for a record $ 2.2 million to an online buyer and became the most expensive Heuer wristwatch ever put up for auction.
“Steve McQueen and his Heuer Monaco are more than just one of the most famous watches of the last century, they have forever shaped TAG Heuer's culture. We were pleasantly surprised by the excitement in the watchmaking community ahead of the auction, and this record number bears witness to the historical importance and great legacy of this Heuer watch,”said Frederic Arnault, CEO of TAG Heuer.