I've got hold of the printed catalogue today - a small step for a man working 200 yards from the Milan offices of Patrizzi, I have to be really honest..

I will leave aside all the discussions about the quality of the watches: it is difficult to judge from the pictures available, they are the same as the digital catalogue that has appeared on their auction house website this afternoon. As per the variety and selection of the watches, I will not add anything to Jeff's great "Auction Rap": it is a perfect description of what will be on sale. Including the "frankens": a couple of them are so incredible that I'm sure that many people will fall in love with them and possibly make a bid. By the way, starting prices are decent and not over inflated in Euro terms: it is difficult to judge how they look in US$, with the exchange rate around 1.50.

The only thing I have to add is that the printed catalogue itself is stunning. Glossy, well edited, with a first section of 110 pages dedicated to Heuers that dwarfs the other parts, and with a presentation that includes loads of text and other pictures, many from the racing environment: it could have been easily a separate catalogue by itself. There are many references from Arno's book and, of course, from OnTheDash.

Now, I don't know whether the watches on sale will stand the test of the very selective Heuer aficionados community, if there are many wrong hands, or pushers, or crowns etc... Or if the auction will be a success or not. It is anyway the first time that vintage Heuer watches have been celebrated in such a magnificent way by a specialist auction house, and it's something that we should all be happy about.

: I am delighted to be the first website to present the photos of
: amazing Heuer chronographs to be offered by Patrizzi & Co,
: on Saturday, November 28th, in Milan.

: I have quickly reviewed the 129 watches included in the catalog,
: and selected these four for this preview, not necessarily as the
: personal favorites, but as four that I expect to be of great
: interest to our readers: there has been much discussion of the
: Autavia Divers, and this looks like a nice sample of the 11063P,
: with the decompression bezel this Monaco is the favorite of
: several readers the gold Carreras have been "hot"
: lately, with several of our readers chasing them [who knows,
: perhaps someone will choose to chase this one!!] many see the
: Silverstones as the one watch to watch in 2010, as TAG-Heuer
: releases the re-issue, as part of the 150th anniversary
: celebration The "paper" catalog has just been printed;
: the online version will be release soon; but these four are for
: the OnTheDash / Chronocentric / VetroPlastica readers to enjoy.

: Of course, comments and discussion will be welcomed; the full
: catalog is under "embargo", so I am limited in terms
: of what I can release, but I am happy to answer some reasonable
: questions: Are there lots of wonderful watches for us? Yes. How
: many Silverstones? Three, and anyone can guess the colors . . .
: hint: none of them are black. How many Monacos? Too many to
: count. Are there any Carrera 12 Datos, with the "fat
: lugs"? Yes. What about the Carrera 12 Dato NS, the new King
: of the Carreras. Sorry, but none that I could find. Are there
: some "frankens" [combinations]? Maybe . . . it
: wouldn't be a Heuer auction without a handful of these. What
: about these so-called "Specials" that we keep hearing
: about? Yes, but let's see what we can learn about them, before
: we start screaming. [Of course, there will be plenty of time to
: scream, if we choose to do so.] Abercrombies? Yes. Poor men's
: Heuers? At least one. Rich men's Heuers? Yes, yes, yes . . . and
: yes again!! Strongest selection? Carreras, in my view. Are they
: all perfect / NOS / mint? No, but there are plenty of really
: nice pieces that most of us would be thrilled to own. Anything
: to mount OnTheDash? Well, I suppose that you could drill through
: the strap or bracelet, and mount some OnTheDash, but none really
: made for that purpose. Anything for the soccer (football)
: freaks? Yes. Anything for the Harley Davidson freaks? Yes. Any
: of those super-cool, red-cased, split-second rally chronographs?
: Not unless I missed the listing, which seems unlikely. OK, then
: what about the super-cool, black-cased, split-second rally
: chronographs? Same as above. Any boxes and papers? Man, this is
: a watch auction, not an ephemera auction. [by the way, what is
: this ephemera that we keep hearing about?] Anything with the
: name "Sears Roebuck" or "Allstate" on the
: dial? Like I said, this collection was put together in Italy,
: not Iowa, Indiana or Illinois. When was the last time you saw a
: Sears Roebuck in Italy? How many "Memphis" watches in
: the auction. Five that I can count!! Oh, my mistake . . .
: actually zero. I am becoming more and more convinced that I will
: own the only one ever produced. Daytona? Of course. Kentucky?
: Yes. Pasadena? Yes. Atlanta? Yes, two of them . . . and I am
: not kidding!! Alabama or Augusta? Sorry, no such thing made by
: Heuer. Maybe see whether Antiquorum might have one of these for
: you. Any Index Mobile or split second chronographs? Sorry, no
: such thing made by Heuer. Maybe see whether Antiquorum might
: have one of these for you. Anything used at the filming of Le
: Mans? Well, maybe . . . I mean there were hundreds of people
: there, wearing hundreds of watches, so maybe someone has cooked
: up some "provenance". Maybe see whether . . . [you
: know the rest] Anything owned by Steve? Huh. Who is this
: "Steve"? What about the Sifferts? Yes. Anything worn
: in space? Doubtful . . . very doubtful. How much caffeine have
: you had today? And how much sleep this week? Loads of the former
: and a little of the later. Did you take a "power nap"
: earlier this evening? Yes, how else could I possibly be writing
: this so-called "Q&A"? Will any of the "Ten Great
: Mysteries" be solved by this auction? Hope springs eternal
: . . . I am very optimistic!! So get ready for an exciting two
: weeks in the vintage Heuer world.

: Thanks to my new friends at Patrizzi & Co.; all photos are
: copyright Patrizzi & Co., 2009, used with their kind
: permission.

: Jeff

:
:

:
:

:
:

:
: