Historic Patek Philippe Watch Sells for HK$48.9 Million at Hong Kong Auction
The last emperor of China's Qing Dynasty, Puyi, had a Patek Philippe watch that sold for a record HK$48.9 million at an auction in Hong Kong.
The watch was once gifted to Puyi's Russian interpreter when he was imprisoned by the Soviet Union.
The watch was one of only eight known Patek Philippe Reference 96 Quantieme Lune timepieces and was researched and verified by the auction house for three years.
It easily beat the pre-sale estimate of $3 million USD.
Other watches owned by emperors and sold at auction have also fetched high prices, including a Rolex watch that belonged to the last Emperor of Vietnam, Bao Dai, which sold for $5 million in 2017.