Christie’s X ELA Fondation, caritative auction

A collection of exceptional watches will be offered at Christie’s Rare Watches auction on 11 November to benefit The European Leukodystrophy Association (ELA), which supports research into leukodystrophies and the families affected by these diseases. Andersen Genève x BCHH, ArtyA, Atelier Haute Complication, Bovet, Girard-Perregaux, Konstantin Chaykin, Louis Erard, Montblanc, Richard Mille, Swatch, and Ulysse Nardin are the eleven brands who have each generously donated timepieces for this charity auction. All watches will be offered without a reserve price, and each of the eleven watches will come with a tamper-proof passport provided by Watch Certificate™, ensuring traceability and authenticity for their generous owners over time.

Funds raised by the auction will be used to further support researchers as well as support for patients and their families on a daily basis. ELA International is dedicated to research, awareness-raising and international collaboration in order to better understand leukodystrophies and advance research.

François-Henri Pinault: “My personal commitment to ELA goes back many years. The association does remarkable work, both with patients and researchers. This charity sale represents new hope for parents who fight every day. It would not have been possible without the commitment of the Christie’s teams and the generosity of the watch manufacturers, whose invaluable support I would like to acknowledge. I am deeply grateful to them.”

Guy Alba, President of ELA International: “Watches for ELA has been made possible due to the unparalleled support of Christie’s and its teams, the very generous contributions of renowned watchmakers, Zinédine Zidane, ELA’s longstanding Ambassador, and François-Henri Pinault’s exceptional commitment and friendship. Our only goal is to combine the talent of watchmakers, the passion of collectors with the hope generated by medical research, to save the lives of children who are just longing to grow up.”

Remi Guillemin, Head of Watches, Christie’s Europe and US: “Christie’s is incredibly proud to support ELA again with this offering of 11 outstanding timepieces, each one a testament to exceptional craftsmanship and social engagement. It is an honour to bring together the generosity of leading watch brands and the dedication of collectors to help fund critical treatment trials and provide much-needed support to families affected by leukodystrophies.”

The pieces will be on display at Christie’s New York from the 4th to the 9th of October, in Shanghai from the 19th to the 20th of October, Christie’s Hong Kong from the 23rd to the 27th of October, and in Geneva from the 8th to the 10th of November 2024.

The watches being offered in support of ELA

ANDERSEN Genève X BCHH | Celestial Voyager – special edition ELA

This two-crown World Time wristwatch has been crafted exclusively for this occasion and is an exceptional edition of the renowned Celestial Voyager. It features a one-of-a-kind cloisonné enamel world map dial and a customized 24-hour ring, with “ELA” positioned at the 12 o’clock mark, symbolizing the sun at noon. It is a watch showcasing both the minimalistic elegance and the high craftsmanship of the Celestial Voyager.
Estimate CHF40,000-60,000

ArtyA | Butterfly Damascus Micro-Rotor – special edition ELA

ArtyA unveils a unique timepiece, the Butterfly Damascus Micro-Rotor, featuring a Damascus steel case with carbon fiber inserts. The dial is crafted from a genuine butterfly wing, while the watch is powered by a new in-house micro-rotor movement, which took three years to develop and offers a 80-hour power reserve, a technical feat for such a small movement. This watch blends ancient and modern materials to highlight ArtyA’s innovative approach to horology.
Estimate CHF15,000-25,000

Ataelier Haute Complication | The Architecture Mécanique No. 1 – special edition ELA

Made by Vladimir Victor Négault this timepiece is a unique dual time wristwatch created to support ELA, featuring a distinctive day/night indicator arc for the second time zone, replacing the traditional 24-hour display, allowing the wearer to easily differentiate between day and night. Négault’s innovative avant-garde design, influenced by F.P. Journe, showcases a manually-wound movement visible through the display back, highlighting its intricate hand-finishing.
Estimate CHF10,000-20,000

BOVET | Récital 12 – special edition ELA

A one-of-a-kind, Récital 12 features a black lacquered dial adorned with a vibrant yellow sun. Designed exclusively for this auction by BOVET’s owner, Pascal Raffy, the Récital 12 is the first timepiece BOVET has ever created with a bracelet. This piece showcases a new 40mm case, along with a redesigned and reconfigured manual-wind movement and bracelet. Crafted entirely in titanium, the piece is lightweight, ergonomic, and a testament to high horology.
Estimate CHF20,000-40,000

Girard-Perregaux | Laureato Eternity – special edition ELA

Girard-Perregaux has created a unique piece based on its iconic Laureato model. First released in 1975, the Laureato embodies Girard-Perregaux’s unique approach to design with its octagonal bezel and its interplay of straight lines and curves and finishes. Featuring a dial enriched with a guilloché pattern and a deep purple Grand Feu enamel, the Laureato ELA Edition showcases the many talents working at the Manufacture in La Chaux-de-Fonds. True to its origins, Girard-Perregaux powered the Laureato ELA Edition with an in-house movement.
Estimate CHF20,000-30,000

Konstantin Chaykin | Seneca – special edition ELA

The Seneca Piece Unique watch is a tribute to the Stoic philosopher Seneca, featuring a distinctive mask-like design inspired by ancient Roman theatre masks. It integrates philosophical and historical elements, including a moonphase and date display, with the date numerals forming the Latin phrase “Recte facti fecisse merces est” over the course of a month. The watch is the first Wristmon to include a date complication, honouring the Roman origins of the modern calendar.
Estimate CHF15,000-25,000

Louis Erard | Noirmont Marqueterie – special edition ELA

The independent watchmaking maison Louis Erard continues its pursuit of blending métiers d’art with contemporary watchmaking in a bold, accessible way. This unique masterpiece features miniature marquetry, showcased on a single, meticulously handcrafted dial. The dial comprises over 70 wooden pieces, with natural walnut burl wood at its centre and tulip tree wood, stained in three shades of green, forming captivating geometric cubes handcrafted by artisan Bastien Chevalier, based in St. Croix.
Estimate CHF4,000-8,000

Montblanc | Star Legacy Nicolas Rieussec Chronograph 43mm – special edition ELA

The Star Legacy Nicolas Rieussec Chronograph 43mm showcases a groundbreaking iteration of the Maison’s iconic chronograph model. Encased in sleek 43mm black DLC-coated stainless steel, the dial features a 19th-century drawing capturing the thrilling moment when four jockeys and their horses approach the finish line at Paris’s Champ-de-Mars racecourse.
Estimate CHF15,000-25,000

Richard Mille | RM65-01 Automatic Split-Seconds Chronograph Dark Yellow Quartz TPT®

The culmination of five years of meticulous development, REF. RM65-01 FQ/3787, NO. 048/120, CIRCA 2024 represents the most intricate automatic timepiece ever produced by Richard Mille. It exemplifies the brand’s technical mastery, seamlessly combining multiple advanced functions, unique architecture, and a refined aesthetic. Limited to just 120 pieces in a striking dark yellow Quartz TPT®, this is the first example to come to auction.
Estimate CHF350,000-450,000

OMEGA X Swatch | Bioceramic MoonSwatch, Mission to Neptune, Moonshine Gold

The “Mission to Neptune, Moonshine Gold” chronograph is the one millionth MoonSwatch, a true milestone engraved inside the watch for posterity. Additionally, this timepiece features a seconds hand coated with OMEGA Moonshine™ Gold, an alloy invented by OMEGA. Finally, a trophy-stand engraved with ‘1,000,000’ accompanies the watch to highlight its unique status.
Estimate CHF500-1,000

Ulysse Nardin | Freak X ELA – special edition ELA

Ulysse Nardin presents a Freak X in a Black DLC Titanium case inspired by ELA’s signature colour pink used for the minuterie, the hands with pink superluminova and a pink round line on the hour wheel. The Freak’s influence on contemporary watchmaking was instrumental: Ulysse Nardin presented a watch with no dial in 2001, no hands and no crown, a mechanical watch using silicon for the first time.
Estimate CHF20,000-40,000

Find all the information on the models presented at the auction on watchesforela.eu and christies.com.
Below link, sorted by brand, contains images and additional information of the watches.
ELA x Christie’s

About ELA
Founded in 1992 in France by Guy Alba and sponsored by Zinédine Zidane, the European Leukodystrophy Association (ELA) brings together families who are working to defeat these genetic diseases that destroy the myelin (the nerve sheath) of the nervous system. Every week in Europe, 20 to 40 children are born with these diseases, which progressively lead to the loss of all sensory, motor and other vital functions. Today, ELA International groups together 7 ELA associations in Europe: Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain and Switzerland, and brings together researchers from all over the world. Since its creation, thanks to donations, ELA has funded 571 research programmes for a total amount of €48.8 million. As such, ELA is the world’s leading funder of medical research into leukodystrophies.

About Christie’s
This sale represents Christie’s second collaboration with ELA, following the successful charity auction “The Star’s Hearts Beat for ELA” in Paris in 2021. With over a century of experience in charity auctions, including the Red Cross auction in 1918, Christie’s continues to support research and humanitarian causes worldwide.
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• Please note when quoting estimates above that other fees will apply in addition to the hammer price – see Section D of the Conditions of Sale at the back of the sale catalogue.  *Estimates do not include buyer’s premium. Sales totals are hammer price plus buyer’s premium.