A touch of elegance can be added just with a classy timepiece on your wrist. It signifies prestige for the wealthy and famous personalities who enjoy wearing these to look like absolute royalty.
The world of watch collecting is incomprehensible and outlandish, with many of the most expensive watches in the world fetching vast sums at auction that far transcend their asking price. While some watches are adorned with luxurious diamonds, some wrist timepieces were made extraordinary because of their historical significance.
Since 2022, there have been no watches on the top 10 list under $10 million. In this article, you will come across a jaw-dropping watch collection that is fit for royalty and exude charm and elegance with a price to match.
Here are the top 10 most expensive watches in the world in 2022:
Patek Philippe Stainless Steel 1518: $11.14 Million
When it comes to the most expensive watches, there is simply one brand that you cannot avoid— Patek Phillippe. Although it might not have achieved the same household names as Rolex and Omega, this 183-year-old watch manufacturer has stream-rolled past all others in the auction room.
Patek Philippe Stainless Steel 1518 was sold back in the 2016 auction. If this watch would again be auctioned today, it would be worth about $15 million. The value of this watch emanated from being an absolute innovation when it was first introduced.
Back in the day, Patek was amidst the fight with Audemars Piguet for the title of the “absolute watchmaker.” At roughly the same timeline, they have decrypted the same complexity at almost the same timeline. To carry this complexity, Patek only made two timepieces, having 1518 as one of them.
This wristwatch is considered the holy grail of steel watches.
Jacob & Co Billionaire: $18.2 Million
Jacob and Co are masters at gem setting. Hence, they went all out when they decided to make a one-of-a-kind statement piece by creating a watch that’s extremely expensive that only billionaires can afford.
With 177 carats of emerald and baguet cut diamonds, Jacob & Co Billionaire took the spotlight in the luxury watch space when a famous American boxer bought it for a price of $18.2 million.
Rolex Paul Newman Daytona Ref.6239: $18.7 Million
Collectors are eager to have this Rolex Paul Newman Daytona Ref.6239 on their wrist. Rolex made a limited series with a particular style of dials that later became known as Newman Daytonas, and Paul Newman’s very own was the most famous in the batch. Aside from the fact that Paul Newman wore this watch himself, Rolex ref. 6239 is actually the first-ever iteration of the Rolex Daytona.
The scarcity, uniqueness, and celebrity made this watch one of the most valuable watches to ever be sold at auction. Introduced in 1963, the Rolex.6239 is the first-ever iteration of the Rolex Daytona.
Patek Philippe “Henry Graves” Pocket Watch Price: $24 Million
Patek Philippine “Henry Graves” Pocket Watch Price used to be the most expensive watch in the world, sold for $11 million back in 1999. Although $11 million seems too small these days, that amount was already so big back in that time.
Patek Philippe made this watch himself for the banker Henry Graves in 1933, and it took more than five years to be completed. Aside from its high price, it was hailed to be the most complicated and complex pocket watch in the world. This watch has more than 24 functions made out of 18k gold.
In 2014, this Patek Philippe model went to auction once again and has made a new auction history for getting sold at $24 million.
Chopard 201 Carat Watch: $25 Million
With 874 rare diamonds, Chopard 201 Carat Watch remains to be one of the most expensively priced pieces of jewelry on the market. This watch was sold in 2000 for $25 million and has made it into the front of every luxury publication at that time.
Like Elvis knew rhinestones, Chopard knows glamor. This singularly shiny, glittery spectral dream timepiece resembles the sun. This is the second most expensive women’s wristwatch ever made and is breathtakingly covered in natural colored diamonds. Obviously, with $25 million, we would expect nothing less.
Wearing this requires wrist strength and, of course, a hefty bank account.
Jaeger Le-Coultre Joaillere 101 Manchette: Price $26 Million
Jaeger Le-Coultre Joaillere 101 Manchette is more of a bracelet than a watch. But since it can tell the time, it surely has a place on this list.
This timepiece was given to Queen Elizabeth in 2012 as a tribute to her coronation. When the queen wore the same watch by the same jeweler, the Manchette hadn’t been seen since then. This watch is extraordinarily made up of 577 rare diamonds.
Breguet Grande Complication Marie-Antoinette: $30 Million
Made by Abraham-Louis Breguet, this watch called “The Queen” is known for a good reason. In 1973, a mystery admirer was said to order a Queen Marie Antoinette— a watch that was to be as breathtaking as possible. In terms of complexity, beauty, and artistry, no other watch in the world can ever come close to this Breguet Grande Complication Marie-Antoinette.
Unfortunately, Marie Antoinette never laid her hand on the finished product. The watch was completed 44 years after the timepiece was ordered— 34 years after Marie Antoinette’s death and four years after Breguet’s.
As of 2022, this watch is the most expensive watch in the world. The result of the design was impressive with its beauty and technology that contains every possible function that was possible at that time.
This watch was stolen in the late 1900 and was retrieved in 2007. A lot of watch collectors are going crazy for this watch, and if this were to go on the market today, it would cost a whole lot more than $30 million. If you want to see this watch, it is secured in the Los Angeles Museum. You could go and see it if you are in the area.
Patek Phillipe Grandmaster Chime: $31 Million
To celebrate Patek Philippe’s 175th anniversary in 2012, Grandmaster Chime was crafted. It was considered the most complicated wristwatch that this brand has ever made, literally making some noise in the watch collector’s world.
Patek Phillipe Grandmaster Chime has numerous striking functions among its 20 complications on two dials, attesting to Patek Philippe’s long-standing mastery of chiming complications.
This brand has invested more than seven years in creating this watch and more than 100,000 hours in making the piece with Patek’s first grand strike. This timepiece is probably the most expensive watch in the world in terms of collector appeal and rarity value.
Graff Diamonds The Hallucination: $55 Million
Valued as the most expensive watch in the world, Graff Diamond Hallucination is valued at $55 million, and the incredible worth stems from 110 carats of rare and big-colored diamonds into a bracelet of platinum.
According to Laurence Graff, “The Graff Hallucination is a sculptural masterpiece, a celebration of the miracle of colored diamonds. For many years, I have thought of creating a truly remarkable watch that illustrates our all-consuming passion for diamonds. The Garff Hallucination has made my diamond dream a reality.”
This insanely expensive timepiece costs as much as a gulf stream private jet.
