A double-signed Patek Philippe Reference 1463R from 1950 is the star lot at Christie’s Rare Watches New York: Online auction, which opens today and runs until December 10.

This year’s pandemic has transformed the auction market, with watches like this Patek Philippe, which has a pre-sale estimate of $400,000 to $600,000, selling at online-only auctions rather than, as would normally have been the case for a watch of this prestige, in physical sale rooms.

In-person auctions have been taking place in Hong Kong and Geneva in recent months, but New York restrictions and rising numbers of covid cases prevent them.

Christie’s describes the reference 1463 as a discovery from one of the great golden eras of Patek Philippe, and the watch is made even more desirable because it has a rare pink gold case and a golden dial signed by legendary Venezuelan retailer Serpico y Laino.

Patek Philippe made the ref.1463 from 1940 to 1965, but only around 21 of the chronograph were produced each year, mostly in yellow gold or stainless steel.

Pink gold is the rarest, with a total of 145 pieces ever made and only 55 examples identified publicly today, according to Christie’s.

Other key lots at the Christie’s Rare Watches New York: Online auction include:

A steel Rolex Big Eye Paul Newman Panda dial Daytona chronograph from 1971, which has a pre-sale estimate of $300,000 to $500,000.

A 1976 Patek Philippe Perpetrual Calendar Chronograph with moon phases (ref.24997) in 18ct gold with an estimate of $350,000 to $450,000.