Vanity Fair UK - 10.2019

JEROME PREVOST/TEMPSPORT/CORBIS/VCG VIA GETTY IMAGES (S

ENNA IN KART); PAUL-HENRI

CAHIER/GETTY IMAGES (SENNA

WITH HELMET); JOSH EDELSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES (BALLINGER); SHUTTERSTOCK (SEA WATER); GET

TY IMAGES (FREE DIVER)

Back in 1959, Jaeger-LeCoultre set a new standard in

dive watch design with the creation of its Memovox

Deep Sea—the first watch of its type to feature a

mechanical alarm designed to remind the wearer

of when it was time to return to the surface. Six

years later, the watch was modified and improved

to become the Memovox Polaris, which offered

greater water resistance, a three-part caseback that

gave the alarm a louder, more sonorous sound and a

trio of sealed crowns: one for setting the alarm, one for

charging it and one for setting the time. Water resistant

down to 200 metres and with a large-for-the-era

42mm case, the E859 Memovox Polaris (named after

the Polaris missiles made famous during the Cold

War) is a vintage watch that remains as practical to

wear as it is good looking. Just 1,714 were produced

from 1965 to 1970, although modern “tribute” models

were launched in 2008.

June 2010

Christie’s,

New York

£5,337

December

2009

Bonhams,

London

£10,087

Hero Watch JAEGER-LECOULTRE MEMOVOX POLARIS

Sennasational

June 2011

Antiquorum,

Hong Kong

£10,039 March 2013

Antiquorum,

Geneva

£14,477

December

2014

Artcurial,

Paris

£9,578 October

2016

Christie’s,

Dubai

£13,958

November 2017

Phillips,

Geneva

£14,088

WORT H A

GAMBLE

A genteel way of

bringing the casino

to the people, the

Little Monte Carlo—

made in 1925—

comprises a pocket

watch case fitted

with a miniature

roulette wheel.

Pushing the winding

crown causes the

central hand to spin

before coming to

rest at a random

number, just like the

real thing. The

winning punter laid

down €1,430

(c. £1,320) to secure

it at Antiquorum’s

Monaco sale in July.

July 2018

Antiquorum,

Monaco

£27,282

his yellow gold Rolex

Cosmograph (below)

was a gift from the late

Ay rton Senna to A ngelo

Parilla, the mentor, manager

and friend who founded DAP

(Di Angelo Parilla) Karts in

1970 —and in whose karts

Senna contested the World

Championship from 1978

to 1982 before going on to

become one of the

greatest Formula One

drivers of all time.

Although the watch

dates from 1989, the

engraving on the

caseback—“To Angelo from

Ay rton, 1978”—refers to the

year their partnership began.

The unique piece fetched CHF

162,500 (c. £123,300) at Phillips

Geneva on May 11, along with a

signed visor from one of the

Brazilian ace’s race helmets.

T

Stopwatch Auction Report

By Simon de Burton

TIME IS MONEY

Keeping watch on this season’s sales

Above: Senna

during Master

Karting at

Bercy, 1993.

Below: Senna

dons his helmet

at the San

Marino Grand

Prix , 1 9 92

This Favre Leuba Bivouac 9000

(above) might not have been to

hell and back—but it went as far

as it’s possible to go in the other

direction (while remaining

on Earth, at least). The titanium-

cased tool watch with built-in

altimeter was worn by climber

Adrian Ballinger (above) when

he summited Mount Everest in

May 2018 and was one of few

watches carried to the world’s

highest peak to have appeared at

auction. Ballinger, one of the

world’s leading high altitude

climbers and a veteran of more

than half a dozen Everest ascents,

donated the CHF7,500 (around

£5,700) achieved for the watch

by Antiquorum on May 12 to

Nepal’s Khumbu Climbing

Centre which trains local people

as mountain guides.

Positive

ALTITUDE

24 VANITY FAIR ON TIME AUTUMN^2019