Yesterday’s auction of Important Watches & Clocks at Sotheby’s New York was led by The Duc d’Orléans Breguet Sympathique, which set a new auction record for any clock and the second-highest price for any timepiece at auction* when it sold for $6,802,500, above an estimate in excess of $5 million**.

The Duc d’Orléans Breguet Sympathique

The distinguished example of the exceptionally rare Sympathique clocks, which helped cement the fame and renown of French watchmaker Abraham- Louis Breguet, was last offered at auction in Sotheby’s 1999 sale of ‘Masterpieces from the Time Museum,’ when it achieved $5,777,500 – this price has remained the auction record for any clock until yesterday’s sale.

* The current record for any timepiece at auction was also set at Sotheby’s 1999 sale of ‘Masterpieces from the Time Museum’ in New York, when The Henry Graves Supercomplication sold for $11,002,500.

**Pre-sale estimates do not include buyer’s premium.

Source: Sotheby’s