THE Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation celebrated the 10th year since it first held a charity gala dinner in Singapore, with the monarch after whom the event is named attending the proceedings — which included an auction.
Guests at the event, held at the Marina Bay Sands, were treated to a spread of haute cuisine and exquisite wines. Up for auction were luxuries like top-class accommodations to the 2019 Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix, a Jeff Koons Balloon Dog sculpture, an optical artwork of Singaporean celebrity Joseph Schooling created by Marcos Marin, and a one-off F.P. Journe Chronographe Monopoussoir Rattrapante, which was made specifically for the foundation’s 10th anniversary celebration.
All sales generated in the auction are earmarked for projects supported by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation.
The special F.P. Journe timepiece is distinguished from a “regular” — if such a thing is even possible — Chronographe Monopoussoir Rattrapante as it gets a blue dial with oracle bone script numerals. Considered the oldest known form of Chinese writing, the numerals, as re-imagined by Francois-Paul Journe after he consulted with renowned scholars and scribes, appear on the dial to mark the hours and minutes, as well as on the two chronograph counters. Only the big double-date apertures at 6 o’clock retain their Arabic numerals.
The unique Chronographe Monopoussoir Rattrapante is based on the version that has a 44-millimeter titanium case (the commercially available watches can also come in red gold or platinum). It is fitted with a matte-finish bracelet also made from titanium, like it also would be in the existing LineSport version. The case’s and bracelet link’s protective rubber inserts are retained in the one-off piece, too.
As the watch’s name says, it is fitted with a monopusher, split-second chronograph movement. An in-house piece, this handwound cal. 1518 is made from aluminum alloy, spins at 21,600vph, has 29 jewels, and when fully wound can tick for at least 80 hours if the chronograph function is not used. Visible through the watch’s exhibition caseback, it is exquisitely decorated, too. Which is quite apt for royalty.
The Chronographe Monopoussoir Rattrapante made for the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation sold for SG$400,000 (or around US$291,000).
