HighendTime

HighendTime We aim to help you collect exceptional timepieces while focusing on good design, intriguing stories and beautiful photography.

This is the “Art of Time” - a carefully curated selection of the rarest timepieces.

[ Category A Registrant A-B-26-01-10402 ]

While the rest of the collecting world is still focused on the auction results at Monaco last weekend, this gold-filled ...
31/07/2026

While the rest of the collecting world is still focused on the auction results at Monaco last weekend, this gold-filled square is sitting here quietly proving that the real power moves never needed a spotlight. Enter the 1971 Omega De Ville Super-Emeraude, Ref. 551.070. The one they call the “Sugar Cube”. Thick, unapologetic, and still looking like it arrived from a parallel decade where Swiss factories actually listened to jewelers.

Andrew Grima did not design watches because he needed the time. He famously said that if you need to know the time, you ask your chauffeur. Omega somehow talked him into it anyway. In 1969 they commissioned the experimental ‘About Time’ pieces; sculpture that happened to tell time. Then the commercial fallout arrived: the Emerald line, 1971 to 1973 only. Grima’s rule was simple and radical. Build the watch around the dial. The case, the crystal, the proportions all had to serve the face, not the other way around.

This Super-Emeraude is inspired by Grima’s philosophy. Emerald-cut crystal with sharp, architectural facets that catch light like a cut stone. A champagne dial with the absolute minimum of indexes. The ultra-thin automatic Caliber 663 humming underneath.

The case itself is pure 1970s confidence; stepped, geometric, almost brutal in its thickness for a dress watch. Gold-filled, yes, but on the wrist it feels denser and more intentional than most of its solid-gold contemporaries. Most of these have disappeared into jewelry boxes or got polished into anonymity. The ones that survive with original dial, hands, crystal, and that unmistakable ‘Grima’ geometry are the ones that make serious Omega collectors sit up.

Short production window. Strong design DNA. This is not a watch that asks for permission. It is the one that still looks modern fifty-five years later because the man who shaped it never cared about looking modern in the first place. He just cared about making something that felt inevitable.

Available. DM us for more details.

Pushers

In the secret archives of Swiss horology, some documents do not just record invention; they capture moments when time it...
23/07/2026

In the secret archives of Swiss horology, some documents do not just record invention; they capture moments when time itself was forced to challenge its boundaries.

A Swiss patent (No. 201339) by John Simon of Tramelan, registered on 30 Nov 1938 and issued on 1st Feb 1939, describes a unique watch case designed to keep water out. The goal was a sealed joint through compression screws and lateral flanges that locked components tightly together; a clever answer to a rectangular case’s struggle with sealing.

Rectangular waterproofing had always been a problem child. Cartier had proven it was theoretically possible in 1931 with the legendary Tank Étanché, commissioned by the Pasha of Marrakech; however, production was tiny due to its complexity. Tramelan’s patent reimagined this design, offering a much cleaner solution.

And here, perfectly preserved after almost 90 years, is one of the hallmarks of our collection; the earliest example of this design, released just after the patent was issued.

In watches, the word “Hermetic” means airtight, influenced by the Greek word for a perfectly sealed vessel. No one knows with certainty where the word stems from and while conjecture on our part, we believe that the word could also be a derivative of ‘Hermes’; and this piece unique that pioneered rectangular waterproofing.

The Hermetic from Hermes is not inspired. It is the origin, a witness to horology’s long battle against water: from W. Pettit & Co.’s 1851 pocket watch, Droz et Fils’ “L’Impermeable”, Rolex’s iconic 1926 Oyster, through Cartier’s 1931 Étanché, and finally John Simon’s refined solution.

Hold it and you can feel the weight of history in your palm. This is the kind of piece that does not belong to a museum or a collection. It belongs to the story of time itself.

- Personal Collection -

Pushers

Most integrated bracelet watches chase flash. This Audemars Piguet doesn’t chase anything; and exists in that rare sweet...
11/07/2026

Most integrated bracelet watches chase flash. This Audemars Piguet doesn’t chase anything; and exists in that rare sweet spot where 1980s audacity met mechanical excellence. The octagonal case in warm yellow gold frames a champagne dial that glows like aged cognac, diamond markers adding just enough sparkle without screaming.

The bracelet? That signature design with articulated segments that flex and flow like actual bamboo stalks, integrates seamlessly, turning the whole piece into wearable architecture. This isn’t some quartz afterthought. It’s mechanical through and through, with a proper movement in an era when many brands had surrendered to battery power.

Rare in this configuration; full gold, mechanical, with the original bracelet intact and carrying proportions that make the Bamboo one of AP’s most distinctive designs from the golden period. While Royal Oaks usually get the spotlight, these Bamboos represent the maison’s quieter, more playful side: bold, incredible, and with an unmistakable “only AP could do this” confidence.

The way it sits on the wrist is pure seduction: links conforming perfectly, the case catching light from every angle, the dial delivering that perfect vintage warmth. In a market obsessed with overhyped modern reissues, this one feels like contraband. A genuine find from a time when Audemars Piguet still made watches that felt alive. This is the kind of piece that stops conversations. And it’s here to stop all those around you.

Available. DM us for more details.

Pushers

Co-curated with my good friend and brother, the legendary Nicolas.Mauboussin

While the rest of the herd chases thin dress watches like they’re chasing relevance, this early 1970s Boucheron Carrée s...
07/07/2026

While the rest of the herd chases thin dress watches like they’re chasing relevance, this early 1970s Boucheron Carrée shows up thicker, heavier, and unapologetic. A perfect square case in solid yellow gold with a dore dial showcasing an automatic movement and a date window; features most Carrées have never bothered with. This isn’t the delicate manual version everyone knows. This is the one that decided rules applied to other brands.

Boucheron never really played small. Founded in 1858 by Frédéric Boucheron in Paris, the maison treated watches like extensions of their Place Vendôme DNA: bold, uncompromising and built to outlast trends. By the 1940s they were obsessed with how a timepiece attaches to the wrist, patenting multiple unique clasp systems (the BT numbers hand-engraved on casebacks) that were unlike anything else in watchmaking.

The Reflet, their 1947 icon, introduced the famous invisible sliding clasp, a seamless, single-piece strap system that eliminated the traditional buckle entirely. Many Carrées, including much rarer variants like this one, borrowed that same Reflet-style sliding mechanism. It’s not just functional; it’s jewelry-level engineering disguised as a watch.

The Carrée line was already a statement, a square rebellion against round conformity. But this thicker automatic variant? That’s the unicorn in this family. Paired with the textured strap and the signature sliding clasp, it sits on the wrist like it owns the room. Rare even then. Borderline mythical now.

Most collectors will never see one. They’ll chase the thin manual versions and miss the point. This one brings presence. Weight. A kind of mechanical swagger that makes thinner pieces like apologies. Own this and you’re claiming a Boucheron from an era when they still made objects strictly on demand. The kind of watch that separates the collectors who get it from the ones who just follow.

Available. DM us for more details.

Pushers

Pure onyx does not reflect. It consumes. A void so absolute that even the legendary Cartier signature vanishes into its ...
03/07/2026

Pure onyx does not reflect. It consumes. A void so absolute that even the legendary Cartier signature vanishes into its depths until stray light betrays it; ghost letters floating on a midnight stone.

This rare 1970s Cartier New York Carre did not arrive just as a watch. It came as a shadow given form: yellow gold case heavy with the memory of wrists long gone, the black textured strap catching light like scales on something ancient and alive. It drew us in, the way certain heirlooms do when no one is watching.

The flawless onyx swallows the room’s light and gives back only depth; a darkness seemingly created only for two slender hands of gold to cut through time itself. The stepped case, with its softly squared shoulders, feels architectural yet intimate, as if designed not for the wrist but for the quiet moments when time slows enough to be noticed.

Stone dials have always been horology’s quiet rebellion. Not printed, not painted, but cut from the living earth. Onyx, in particular, has a reputation for defiance. Brittle enough to shatter, yet enduring enough to become legend. In ancient lore it was a stone of guardianship, absorbing all negativity while revealing hidden strength.

Cartier’s 1970s New York workshop understood this alchemy. They took a material that resisted easy work and turned it into something profound: a dial that absorbs the chaos of the day and gives back only clarity. Modern NSO black on black creations chase this exact rarity with sky high prices, but they miss the soul that this one carries; the authentic weight of a time when Cartier still made pieces that felt like private commissions from another era.

This is the kind of watch that slips into your life and quietly reshapes it. The one you reach for on ordinary mornings and suddenly remember why beauty matters. The one you imagine your child or grandchild tracing with small fingers, asking not just what time it is, but who you were when you wore it. A bridge between the elegance you inherited and the stories you are still writing.

Available. DM us for more details.

Pushers

Four visible screws. That’s the first thing that stops you. Not the Roman numerals marching across the rose guilloché di...
30/06/2026

Four visible screws. That’s the first thing that stops you. Not the Roman numerals marching across the rose guilloché dial, not the elongated Tank proportions that feel architectural, but those deliberate, exposed screws securing the bezel. They turn this Cartier into something rarer than a standard Tank; a mechanical declaration inspired by the 1931 Tank Étanche, the waterproof original built for the Pasha de Marrakesh who demanded a watch that could survive the water.

This is the CPCP era at its most sincere. Between 1998 and 2008, Collection Privée Cartier Paris revived the maison’s most storied shapes. No mass production here. These were Cartier’s love letters to its own archives: guilloché dials, “Paris” signatures, exhibition casebacks that let you watch the movement breathe.

This Tank à Vis stands apart even within that private collection. While other Tanks polished their edges smooth, this Ref 2608 kept the screws, a technical wink to the Étanche’s robust construction, now executed in yellow gold with modern precision and with a transparent back that reveals the highly decorated caliber and makes it much rarer than its sibling, the Ref 2484 which was produced in much larger numbers.

The guilloché ripples outward from the center like the wake of a vintage speedboat on the Seine. The black strap (original Cartier leather) with deployant feels like it was cut yesterday. Serviced by Cartier itself, with papers, the watch is in excellent condition, screws still crisp, the case still proud, the movement still singing.

Most Tanks ask you to admire the silhouette. This one invites you inside. The screws, the exhibition back, the CPCP discipline; they all turn ownership into a private conversation with Cartier’s golden age of watchmaking. Slip it on and you wear the exact moment Cartier decided its past deserved to be seen, felt, and kept.

Available. DM for more details.

Pushers

One click and your world narrows on the geometry of a patented mechanism fastening against leather. That is how this lat...
24/06/2026

One click and your world narrows on the geometry of a patented mechanism fastening against leather. That is how this late-1970s vintage Boucheron Ronde announces itself: with the quiet authority of a jewel that has already decided it belongs on your wrist.

The double-stepped bezel catches light like facets of a hidden gem, framing a hand-etched guilloché dial whose intricate pattern shimmers as if time itself were being engraved by an unseen Parisian artisan. Gold hands glide across the textured surface with poise, while the original black strap; with its finely textured leather, completes a composition that feels less like a watch and more like a private conversation between maker and owner.

Boucheron, the jewelers of Place Vendôme well before they were watchmakers, were obsessed with how a timepiece actually attaches to the wearer. Their patented clasp systems (those engraved BT numbers on the casebacks) were never afterthoughts, they were declarations.

Sliding-lug inventions for single-piece straps, adjustable leather mechanisms without bulky deployants, each innovation a rebellion against convention. This Ronde wears its heritage proudly: the unique gold clasp, the stepped elegance, the guilloché that turns every wrist movement into a play of light. Quartz precision and yet executed with the same soul that defined its 1950 and 1960s manual-wind predecessors.

The 1970s marked a transition for Boucheron, utilizing movements from specialized suppliers and also pioneering the new electronic quartz era. Authentic vintage quartz Boucheron references are actually much rarer than their mechanical counterparts as far less were made.

We already hold the rarest of this reference; the very first mechanical Ronde from the 1960s. Together they span eras yet speak the same refined language; mechanical vs quartz, but always with that unmistakable Boucheron clasp as the signature.

Rare. Personal. Impossible to ignore. The kind of piece that can turn “I saw it” into “I own it.”

Available. DM for more details.

Pushers

You feel it before you even read the dial: raw, unpolished, and utterly compelling. The true genesis of the Explorer leg...
28/05/2026

You feel it before you even read the dial: raw, unpolished, and utterly compelling. The true genesis of the Explorer legend.

Long before the iconic 3-6-9 black dials and the Ref. 1016 became synonymous with high-altitude conquest, this was the watch that first carried the “Explorer” name. A transitional masterpiece from the early 1940s, born in the shadow of wartime exploration and pre-Everest ambition.

The dial boldly declares “OYSTER EXPLORER” in crisp, confident lettering; a deliberate omission of the “Rolex” name that marks some of the earliest and purest expressions of the line. In this era, Rolex was still testing the identity of its adventure watches; the “Oyster Explorer” designation stood alone as a statement of purpose: waterproof, reliable, built for the unknown.

Housed in the classic Oyster case with the unmistakable two-tone warmth of steel and gold accents, the watch features a beautifully preserved dial, bold Arabic numerals, and a rare small seconds sub-register at 6 o’clock. The oversized winding crown speaks of serious field use: the kind of tool watch that actually accompanied explorers when the stakes were real and the margins for error nonexistent.

This Ref. represents the very first chapter of the Explorer saga: the bridge between the pre-war Oyster Perpetual chronometers that survived extreme conditions and the legendary post-1953 Explorer that celebrated Hillary and Norgay’s triumph on Everest. While later models would refine the formula, this early example carries the unfiltered DNA: tough and devoid of flourish.

This is where the Explorer was born. Not in 1953 with fanfare; but much earlier, in steel, gold, and with quiet determination. A foundational piece from the golden age of Rolex exploration. Wear it, and you hold the origin of the legend itself.

Available now. DM us for more details.

.io

Inspired by my good friend, the inimitable , and her latest bucket list tick.

In the dawn of the 1970s, as the world was shrinking under the roar of jet engines; Bulgari, guided by the visionary han...
19/05/2026

In the dawn of the 1970s, as the world was shrinking under the roar of jet engines; Bulgari, guided by the visionary hands of Gerald Genta, created a masterpiece. The Ref. G1445: a bold architectural statement in 18k white and yellow gold, with two fully independent manual movements, beating side by side.

The silver dial, produced by the legendary Stern Frères, is stunning and offers two subsidiary dials floating in perfect symmetry. Two crowns stand sentinel on opposing flanks, allowing the wearer to adjust the two time zones intuitively.

These ‘Gemini’ (Latin for “twins”) split dial models represent one of the most imaginative horological responses to the era of international travel. Towards the end of 1978, Patek Philippe also showcased its own ‘Gemini’ variant: Ref. 4404, a super rare dual-time reference with almost the exact design language; eight pieces have been seen in the market.

Genta’s influence here is unmistakable: the geometry, the presence, the refusal to compromise. The result is wearable sculpture that feels as much at home in a Roman palazzo as it does aboard a transatlantic flight.

In today’s market, vintage timepieces with Genta DNA are gaining serious collector momentum. Recent auction results have also supported this: a late 1980s Bulgari Gemini reference in steel and gold just hammered at over 5 times the high estimate to touch 30k USD at Phillips a few weeks back.

This is a piece that whispers of an era when watchmaking was different; when houses like Bulgari and Genta pushed boundaries instead of following trends. A quiet legend, waiting for its next chapter.

Available now. DM for more details.

.io

There it sits; a ghost in white gold, colder and rarer than almost every legend we have showcased from this brand. Not j...
09/05/2026

There it sits; a ghost in white gold, colder and rarer than almost every legend we have showcased from this brand. Not just any Piaget Polo. One of the chosen few.

Forged in the late 1970s dawn of the sports-luxury era, when Piaget decided the world needed a bracelet that felt like liquid metal poured around the wrist, this reference carries the full weight of the house’s mythology.

Gadrooned bars of 18k white gold flow like armour across the case and integrated bracelet, each polished edge catching light like a blade. The dial; minimalist, almost serene, is all original as confirmed with Piaget and carries its date window, as if time itself had paused to pay respect.

No crown on the flank to break the symmetry. Just pure, uninterrupted elegance.

While yellow gold Polos ruled the 70s and 80s on the wrists of De Niro, Warhol, royalty and the jet set, white gold versions were always the quiet aristocrats: roughly amounting to less than 10% of total production.

But this one? The ultra-rare large specimen without the word “quartz” on the dial; we heard that only around 15 examples ever left the atelier, reserved almost exclusively for the Piaget family and their innermost circle of executives. A private communion between the maker and the wearer.

This is not a watch you buy. This is a watch you inherit; or steal, from the gods if you’re lucky enough to cross its path. A vanishing relic from the golden age of Piaget’s audacity.

White gold. Date. Jumbo. Vintage. Find me another.

- Personal Collection -

.io

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