The PHILLIPS Hong Kong Watch Auction: XX takes place on 23-25 May, 2025, at our West Kowloon headquarters. The auction includes more than 280 of the world's finest watches – and though we are loath to boast, we truly think it's one of the best catalogues we've ever put together. We'll be highlighting a number of the most interesting lots and stories featured in the sale right here, including all the timepieces highlighted below.
– By Logan Baker
When most people think about watch auctions, they picture wristwatches — and for good reason. But dig a little deeper, and you’ll find an entire world of horological objects that defy expectations: enamelled pocket watches, solar-powered clocks with space-age tech, stone-dial Piaget creations worn like jewelry, and automaton timepieces that blur the line between art and mechanics.
This season at the Phillips Hong Kong Watch Auction: XX, we invite you to open your collecting lens. Pocket watches, objets d’art, and clocks offer not only extraordinary craftsmanship but also a direct connection to the eras and cultures that shaped them. From the precision of a British duplex movement built for Qing Dynasty elites to the poetic symbolism of enamel flowers on a pendant watch, these pieces hold stories that wristwatches alone can't tell.
Whether it’s your first foray beyond the wrist or a chance to deepen an already eclectic collection, the unexpected treasures in this catalogue prove one thing: great horology comes in many forms — and sometimes, the most compelling pieces aren’t worn on the wrist.
Lot 801: A Circa 1800s Pistol-Form Perfume Sprinkler with Concealed Watch, Attributed to Moulinié & Bautte & Cie
Estimate: HKD $800,000 - 1,600,000
At first glance, it's a flintlock pistol. Pull the yellow gold trigger, and instead of gunpowder, a mechanical tulip blooms from the barrel, releasing a mist of rosewater. No smoke. Just spectacle.
These extraordinary automata — made for the Chinese imperial court in the early 19th century—are among the rarest examples of horological fantasy. Fewer than a dozen survive, held by museums like Patek Philippe, Topkapi Palace, and the Wilsdorf Collection. This one, unseen for 24 years, comes to market courtesy of Phillips.
Crafted by Geneva’s Moulinié, Bautte & Cie, the pistol is a triumph of mechanical art. Set with pearls, diamonds, a lion’s head, and intricate enamel in red and cobalt blue, it houses a hidden watch in the grip, framed by more diamonds, emerald, and opal. Pull the trigger, and a champlevé-enamel tulip springs to life, petals unfurling as perfume fills the air.
Unsigned, but nearly identical to known works by Moulinié, Bautte & Cie — whose pieces captivated Chinese emperors — this pistol-watch captures a brief moment in history when European watchmakers built dreams for the Far East. It even includes its original enamelled winding key, made by Ragnaud à Genève.
Lot 803: A Pair of Circa 1850s Edouard Juvet Pocket Watches
Estimate: HKD $400,000 - 800,000
In 19th-century China, Swiss pocket watches were essential symbols of wealth and taste. Edouard Juvet, working out of Fleurier, mastered the art of making them, especially for this growing market. This matching pair, made for export, reflects the height of that cross-cultural moment.
Why a pair? Not always for romance. More often, one served as a spare. Sending a watch back to Switzerland for repair could take years. Juvet, like his contemporaries, met this demand with technical precision and eye-popping decoration.
Both watches feature vivid enamel scenes on their backs — here, the classical love story of Titus and Berenice — rendered in colors that remain rich after more than a century. Inside, Juvet’s finely chased key-wound movements beat on, housed in gold cases decorated with engine-turned enamel and floral motifs.
Juvet’s watches once sold “like salt,” as his son Leo recalled, with shops in Shanghai, Saigon, and Tianjin. Today, their scarcity makes them even more desirable. This pair comes in remarkable condition, still nestled in their original leather box. A rare survival—and a reminder of just how global Swiss watchmaking has always been.
Lot 804: A Circa 1820s Ilbery Pocket Watch
Estimate: HKD $160,000 - 320,000
William Ilbery is the father of the “montre chinoise” caliber. From London to Fleurier, and eventually to Canton and Macao, Ilbery helped define the style, mechanics, and artistry of watches made for the Chinese market at the turn of the 19th century.
This 60mm enamel and pearl-set pocket watch from around 1820 captures everything Ilbery stood for. The reverse shows a courtly scene — likely inspired by neo-Louis XV tastes — painted in soft pastels and rich enamel. It’s framed by split pearls and flanked by vibrant enameling in turquoise, blue, and red. These flourishes weren’t just decorative—they reflected the imperial preferences of Qing-era collectors.
Inside, you’ll find Ilbery’s signature: a gilt duplex movement engraved with scrolling foliage and a five-arm balance with a diamond endstone. The case, likely the work of Jean-François-Victor Dupont, is as much a painting as a timepiece.
Previously part of the Samuel N. Tonkin collection and privately held for 28 years, this piece isn’t just rare — it’s a piece of the story of how Europe’s finest watchmakers built lasting relationships with China’s elite. A watch like this doesn’t come around often.
Lot 805: A Circa 1860 Edouard Juvet Pocket Watch
Estimate: HKD $160,000 - 320,000
By the mid-19th century, Fleurier-born Edouard Juvet had become one of the key names in Chinese market watchmaking. What began in 1842 as a small factory in Buttes quickly grew, with Juvet’s family expanding operations across Asia — from Shanghai to Saigon. His son Leo ran point on the ground, helping the brand build a reputation for both technical quality and decorative brilliance.
This pocket watch is one of Juvet’s finest. The enamel scene on the caseback — a young shepherd serenading two maidens — draws from the romantic pastoral style popular in China at the time, likely inspired by William Hamilton’s “Morning to Night” series. Only a handful of known examples feature this exact motif.
The enamel work itself is attributed to Jean-Louis Richter of Geneva, whose signature style is instantly recognizable: soft palettes, doll-like faces, and finely balanced compositions. Richter rarely signed his work, but his hand shows clearly here. His figures and landscapes sit comfortably among the best of the era — his pieces now reside in museums like Patek Philippe and Geneva’s Musée de l'Horlogerie.
The rest of the watch doesn’t disappoint. Multicolored champlevé enamel decorates the case, bow, and pendant. Inside, the gilt duplex movement features deep engraving and refined finishing, delivering better accuracy than the more common cylinder escapement.
Kept in a private collection for over 30 years, this watch reemerges as a stunning example of both Swiss enamel artistry and the East-West exchange that defined a fascinating era in watchmaking.
Lot 807: A Circa 1890s L. Vrard & Co. Pocket Watch
Estimate: HKD $800,000 - 1,600,000
You don’t see a watch like this every day. You might catch a glimpse behind glass at the Patek Philippe Museum or the Palace Museum in Beijing — but finding one in private hands? That’s rare. This remarkable hunter-cased Grande and Petite Sonnerie pocket watch, made for the Chinese market in the late 19th century, comes out of a private collection after nearly 30 years.
It was produced by L. Vrard & Cie, a leading retailer in Tianjin, in partnership with Edouard Dubied of Fleurier and features enamel paintings signed by none other than Pierre-Amédée Champod — renowned for his dramatic hunting scenes. In fact, this very watch is documented in La Montre Chinoise by Alfred Chapuis, which traces its commission to a collector from Lao-ting who ordered two enamelled watches with Empire-style pearl-set cases between 1889 and 1891.
What sets this piece apart? Everything. Both covers are framed by 77 pearls (154 in total), unusually using first-quality pearls on both sides. One enamel panel depicts a tiger hunt, with a mounted Indian leader rescuing a fallen hunter. The reverse shows a wild lion attacking a camp, with cavalry rushing in. Champod signed both scenes — extremely rare for Chinese market watches.
Open the case, and you’ll find a powder blue enamel dial with gold Roman numerals, Louis XIV hands, and delicate two-tone gold leaf motifs at the center. The movement, covered by a cuvette engraved with the L. Vrard & Co. Tientsin logomark (亨達利), features twin barrels wound in tandem and a bi-metallic compensation balance — typical of high-grade chiming watches of the period.
The watch comes with its original mahogany presentation box, also signed by L. Vrard. As a bonus, you’re holding a direct link to one of the few Swiss firms that worked closely with China’s imperial elite — records show the Qing court commissioned enamel watches from Vrard for Empress Dowager Cixi’s 60th birthday.
Simply put, this is one of the finest examples of Swiss watchmaking tailored for the Chinese market. A true collector’s trophy — art, mechanics, and cultural history in one.
Lot 808: A Pair of Circa 1860s Edouard Juvet Pocket Watches
Estimate: HKD $80,000 - 160,000
Gripping. Violent. Beautiful. These two 57mm enamelled pocket watches — numbered 44009 and 44012 — show scenes of raw survival: a horse-mounted hunter fending off a mountain lion in rocky canyons, and a wounded man defending himself against a tiger while hunters on foot and camel charge in with rifles and spears. They’re intense, and they were made to impress.
Both watches date to the 1860s and were crafted for the Chinese market by Edouard Juvet of Fleurier, one of the most prominent Swiss makers of the period. The enamel work is attributed to Pierre-Amédée Champod (1834–1913), a master miniaturist known for dynamic, vividly painted hunting scenes. His signature style — rich color, dramatic composition, and expressive figures — is on full display here.
Champod trained under Huguenin, Sauerländer, and Glardon, adopting Glardon’s refined approach. He was awarded a silver medal at the 1900 Paris Universal Exhibition and regularly painted for elite maisons like Bovet, Vaucher, Vrard — and Juvet.
Juvet was among the first to fully commit to the Chinese market, sending his sons Ami-Louis and Léo to run the family’s branches in Shanghai, Tientsin, and Saigon. His watches were known for their quality — and sold fast. “Our watches sell like salt,” Léo famously wrote in 1872. By the next year, they had even registered a Chinese trademark: 有喴 ("You Wei").
Each watch is housed in an Empire-style gold case set with pearls and fitted with a highly decorated duplex movement — featuring a five-arm polished steel balance and ruby endstone under an engraved gold cuvette. The duplex escapement, more accurate than the cylinder but harder to make, speaks to the quality Juvet demanded.
It’s rare to find a single enamel watch this complete and well-preserved. A matched pair with this level of artistry? That’s a serious collector’s prize.
Lot 809: A Circa 1840s Edouard Juvet Pocket Watch
Estimate: HKD $80,000 - 160,000
Edouard Juvet’s name is synonymous with 19th-century Swiss watchmaking for the Chinese market. This 39mm openface pocket watch, made around the 1840s, is a compact masterpiece that speaks to that era of East-West exchange. Cased in yellow gold and set with split pearls, it pairs Swiss precision with bold artistic flair.
The enamel scene on the caseback is classic Juvet: a high-drama hunting tableau showing an Indian horseman locked in combat with a wild lion. This kind of exotic subject matter was popular with elite Chinese collectors and reflects the fusion of European craftsmanship with Chinese tastes.
Inside ticks a rare Jacot Duplex escapement — also called the “Chinese Duplex” — invented in the 1830s by Charles Edouard Jacot. Known for his work between La Chaux-de-Fonds and New York, Jacot brought technical innovation to the escapement, making it smoother and more accurate. This particular version features a deadbeat central seconds hand, which jumps in one-second intervals, mimicking the precision of a regulator clock.
The Jacot Duplex achieves this using a refined duplex design with blued winged weights and double locking teeth. Beating at 14,400 vibrations per hour, it’s a triple deadbeat escapement, a technical flourish that collectors will appreciate.
Juvet’s watches rarely come to market in this condition, especially with original enamel artwork, a working Jacot Duplex escapement, and its fitted presentation box intact. With a signed movement and remarkable historical pedigree, this is a compact but significant piece of horological history.
Lot 810: A Circa 1925 Square Pocket Watch, Attributed to Ernest Veisse
Estimate: HKD $80,000 - 160,000
Enamel pocket watches were objects of prestige in late Qing and early Republican China. The more ornate, the better. This rare square-shaped example, dating to the 1920s and attributed to Ernest Veisse of Paris, checks every box: bold form, rich enamel work, and cultural symbolism crafted for an elite client.
Veisse, a Parisian jeweler active in the early 20th century, marked this piece with his EV hallmark. It’s an unusual form — square, not round — framed in translucent green enamel with white foliate detailing on all sides. The dial is classic and restrained: applied numerals, blued hands, and a small seconds register.
But flip it over, and the artistry takes over. At the center of the caseback, two tigers face off in a lush enamel jungle scene — palms sway, water shimmers, and sunset rays streak across the sky. It’s dramatic, but finely executed, with deep color and precise detail.
The symbolism is deliberate. In Chinese culture, tigers represent strength and courage, while red and gold — seen in the matching chain of ruby, emerald, diamond, gold, and platinum — signal prosperity and luck. This was more than a watch. It was a statement of status and taste.
Still paired with its original leather presentation box, this is a rare survivor from a time when European jewelers and watchmakers built to meet the desires of China’s most discerning collectors.
Lot 812: A Circa 1810 Swiss Pendant Watch
Estimate: HKD $320,000 - 640,000
China’s Qianlong Emperor once wrote to King George III, “Our Celestial Empire possesses all things...there is no need to import the manufactures of outside barbarians.” But there was one exception: mechanical timepieces. Since Jesuit missionaries introduced automata and clocks in the 16th century, the Chinese imperial court developed a deep fascination with Western watchmaking — particularly pieces adorned with intricate enamel and animated mechanisms.
This pendant watch is one of the finest examples of that era. Made for the Chinese market, it’s shaped like a blooming rose. The caseback, fully enameled in delicate pinks, mimics unfolding petals. The bezel features scrollwork and florals in white, orange, and blue over black enamel. Green enamel leaves and pearl-set stamens accent the design, evoking a full, living rose garden. A hidden hinge keeps the lines clean and elegant — an unmistakable sign this was a watch of real importance.
The symbolism runs deep. In Chinese culture, flowers — especially those in bloom — signify renewal, prosperity, and beauty. This watch wasn’t just admired for its function; it was a powerful status symbol.
Its story doesn’t stop there. The gilt cuvette is engraved: “Mary P. Mercer 17th December 1863 from the Summer Palace, Peking, 17th October 1863.” That date is no coincidence. In 1860, during the final phase of the Second Opium War, British and French forces looted and burned the Summer Palace. Many treasures were lost or scattered across the West. This watch likely survived that looting, eventually making its way into Mercer’s hands.
Last seen publicly in 1999, when it was deaccessioned from the legendary Time Museum, this is a rare survivor — an artifact of diplomacy, conflict, and the enduring pull of mechanical beauty across cultures.
Lot 813: A Circa 1850 Just & Son Pocket Watch
Estimate: HKD $80,000 - 160,000
In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, few names carried as much weight in the Chinese export watch trade as Leonard Just. From his London workshop, active from 1790 to 1825, Just built a reputation for making refined timepieces tailored to Chinese tastes. After the British established control over Hong Kong in 1842, he relocated to the island by 1846, where his firm continued under the name Just & Son, serving a growing clientele across Asia.
This enamel pocket watch is a rare and richly symbolic example of that legacy. The caseback features a delicately painted summer blossom — likely a peony — on a striking black enamel ground, surrounded by champlevé detailing. In Chinese culture, the peony isn’t just a flower. It’s the “Queen of Flowers,” representing wealth, power, and prosperity. These motifs were messages meant for elite collectors who knew exactly what they signified.
Framed in an Empire-style case, the watch includes half-pearls on the bezel, bow, and pendant. The caseband features a black and white checkered design, while the interior reveals a sprung gold cuvette and a gilt movement. The movement is finely engraved, jewelled to the center with screwed chatons, and signed Just & Son with a visible serial number.
Timepieces like this were often destined for the homes of the elite — sometimes even the Imperial court — and would have been appreciated as much for their symbolism as their mechanics. Today, this watch stands as a testament to a moment when English watchmaking met Chinese cultural ideals, with beauty, precision, and meaning fused into a single object.
Lot 814: A Circa 1810 Barraud 'Bouquets de Chine' Pocket Watch
Estimate: HKD $80,000 - 160,000
By the late 18th century, timepieces had become powerful symbols in East-West exchange — gifts of diplomacy, artifacts of technology, and emblems of status. This enamel pocket watch by Paul Philipp Barraud, a master chronometer maker in London, stands at the intersection of British precision and Chinese taste.
Barraud, active from the late 1700s to 1820, produced over 1,000 chronometers, many of which were exported to China. While Swiss manufacturers made much of the movement work, English names like Barraud gave the watches added prestige. Often, cases were even marked with pseudo-hallmarks to mimic British origin — this piece features a lion passant in place of the usual gold crown, a subtle nod to the demand for all things “London-made.”
This watch is everything collectors chase: a richly enameled bouquet of summer blossoms set against an engine-turned dark green ground, framed by a case with half-pearls on the bezel, bow, and pendant. It’s a classic “Empire” style example, with a sprung gold cuvette and a dust cover engraved in gilt brass.
Remarkably, the enamel remains untouched — no restoration, no fading. The pearls are intact. A similar piece with a red ground appeared at the Macau Timepiece Museum in 2023, but this watch hasn’t surfaced publicly in 30 years. The fitted case is engraved: “P.B.B – M.J.W. | 1894 from their 1944 loving children,” offering a poignant glimpse into its 20th-century history as a cherished family heirloom.
Barraud’s work helped define a golden era of Anglo-Chinese horology. This piece captures that moment perfectly — mechanical art built for a global empire.
Lot 855: A Circa 1968 Patek Philippe Solar-Powered Perpetual Calendar Table Clock
Estimate: HKD $95,000 - 190,000
In the mid-1960s, building a solar-powered clock was radical. But that’s exactly the kind of challenge Patek Philippe took on. Known for blending tradition with innovation, the brand developed a table clock that ran not on winding or batteries — but light.
Using photoelectric technology similar to what powers satellites, this clock needs just five hours of natural or artificial light to run for a full day. And thanks to a built-in backup battery, it can operate in complete darkness for up to a year. No manual date-setting required — it’s a perpetual calendar.
What makes this example especially compelling is the dial. Most versions were produced with silvered dials and brass cases. This one breaks the mold, with sleek wood paneling and a matching wood dial. It’s warm, modern, and quietly elegant.
The minimalist design features three large calendar apertures that recall an airport departure board — an unmistakable product of its era, yet still fresh today. In excellent condition, this piece is a rare intersection of mid-century design, cutting-edge tech, and Patek Philippe's mechanical mastery.
Lot 1012: A Circa 1970s Piaget Pocket Watch
Estimate: HKD $16,000 - 24,000
In the mid-20th century, Piaget had a secret weapon: the ultra-thin caliber 9P. Just 2mm thick, it opened the door to a golden era of creativity — stone dials, bold materials, and daring case designs. It was so influential, Piaget even launched a “Style Selector” program, letting clients personalize watches with their choice of exotic dials. Icons like Jackie Kennedy, Salvador Dali, and Elizabeth Taylor joined what became known as the “Piaget Society.”
This 42mm pocket watch is a perfect example of that era. Finished with a bark-textured case and fitted with a flawless tiger’s eye dial, it’s a slice of 1970s glamour preserved in exceptional condition. Dauphine hands complete the look, letting the natural beauty of the dial do the talking.