With dozens of diamonds, rubies and emeralds, it is certainly not the type of watch to don for a quick trip to the mall.
At Dh4.19 million, the Bulgari MVSA High Jewellery timepiece is a one-off – and the most expensive in a line-up of the world’s most exclusive watches.
Next month they will be shown in Dubai, under tight security, in an exhibition arranged by Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève as part of Dubai Watch Week.
Described as the Oscars of the watchmaking world, the 72 watches are competing for the title in 10 categories including innovative, sports and jewellery. The winners are announced in Geneva next month.
They will appear in Dubai from October 18 to 21 as part of an international tour which is also visiting Hong Kong and Seoul.
“Some are actually from private collections. Some are coming to the public for the first time,” says Melika Yazdjerdi, director of Dubai Watch Week and head of corporate communication for Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, which with 65 brands is among the largest watch sellers in the region.
“Some are one-off pieces or exclusive pieces and the nice opportunity is that there are brands outside the Sediqqi portfolio. It’s about the wider region and looking at the watch industry.”
The watches are worth more than US$5m in total and include the 410,400 Swiss francs (Dh1.54m) The Charming Bird by Jaquet Droz, which features a miniature singing bird.
None of the watches on show will be available to buy at the event, although Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons does sell some of the brands and timepieces that will feature, including the Horological machine number 6 by MB&F, which is worth 213,900 Swiss francs.
The exhibition is free to the public and visitors will be able to get close – although not too close – to the timepieces.
“They are all behind cases because some of them belong to personal collectors and this is why in terms of security, safety and insurance, we are very careful,” says Ms Yazdjerdi.
The Dh4.19 Bulgari watch, for example is loaded with jewels.
“As far as the mechanics are concerned it is a quartz watch,” says Ms Yazdjerdi. “A lot of jewels have been used – rubies, diamonds, emeralds – and the magnitude of the gems is very unique.
“We will have security on site at all times, 24/7. When you are dealing with a consignment this valuable, you make sure you take all the necessary precautions.”
q&a rich horological timeline
Melika Yazdjerdi, the Dubai Watch Week director and head of corporate communication at Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, tells Gillian Duncan more about the horological event:
Tell me about Dubai Watch Week.
It is a non-commercial event and we are holding it for the first time this October from 18 to 22. An event of this magnitude has never been held in the watch industry before. All the big major events that you have globally are purely commercial. There hasn’t been a platform dedicated to education and raising awareness for the industry specifically, and this is the main objective.
So why is Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons hosting it?
We are celebrating our 65th anniversary this year but are one of the first registered companies to work with the government of Switzerland. So as far as horology and the family is concerned, there is a very deep-routed history between the two. And we have been really established as the curators of time here in the region and we take the role as the educator very seriously.
Aside from the GPHG exhibition, what other public events will take place during the week?
From October 18 to 22, we have the Rebels of Horology exhibition that’s focused on the independent brands. Then we have another event that we are going to be adding to our portfolio, which is The Dubai Mall exhibition. In Dubai Mall we have 18 brands exhibiting and the theme for that exhibition is the history behind each brand. They are going to bring special pieces from their archives.
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