Antiquorum is an auctioneer of modern and vintage timepieces. Established in

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

in 1974, Antiquorum was the first auction house to auction fine watches over the

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in the 1990s. The company was founded in

in 1974 by Osvaldo Patrizzi and expanded to have branches in ten cities, including New York,

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, and

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. Patrizzi sold 50% of his equity to ArtistHouse Holdings in 2006. In June 2007 he was removed by the board of directors and later filed a number of lawsuits. Antiquorum conducts auctions in Geneva, New York and

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about ten times a year, preceded by previews in various major cities worldwide. In 1989 Antiquorum held a "landmark auction" called "Art of Patek Philippe." This auction helped to establish Patek Philippe's reputation as a luxury watch brand and viable investment and solidified the notion that watches can be more than just "timepieces." Consumer Affairs Battle In April 2018, Antiquorum entered into a consent decree with the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs. According to the New York Post, (April 23, 2018) following numerous lawsuits, Antiquorum agreed to pay $1.5 million back to customers who had consigned their watches for sale, but had not been paid the proceeds. In addition, Antiquorum agreed to pay a $500 civil fine for operating an auction house without a license. The New York City office is no longer listed on the Antiquorum website.

Notable Auctions

* In 2002, Antiquorum set the all-time world record for a wristwatch at auction, selling a unique 1939 platinum Patek Philippe World Time Ref. 1415 for US$4,026,524 (SFr. 6,603,500) - more than double the previous world record. *On October 16, 2008, Antiquorum sold a gold

Longines Compagnie des Montres Longines, Francillon S.A., or simply Longines (), is a Swiss luxury watchmaker based in Saint-Imier, Switzerland. Founded by Auguste Agassiz in 1832, the company has been a subsidiary of the Swiss Swatch Group and its predec ...

wristwatch once owned by

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory ...

for US$596,000 in New York. * In March 2009, Antiquorum auctioned a number of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

's possessions including his

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pocket watch and spectacles. This caused controversy and the Indian government tried to cancel the sale. * In November 2009 and March 2004, Antiquorum sold the yellow-gold and the white-gold Patek Philippe Calibre 89, respectively, and both watches currently rank among the top 10 most expensive watches ever sold at auction, with final prices over 5 million US dollars (the auction record for Antiquorum).

References

{{Reflist http://www.watchprosite.com/?page=wf.forumpost&fi=10&ti=1028318&pi=7312838&pzt= Horology Companies based in Geneva Retail companies established in 1974 Swiss auction houses