Watches New entry
Someone Paid €2.234 Million for This Rolex. Obviously, It Was in Monaco.
This week's entry on the Absolutely Monaco Ridiculousness Index is a watch. But not just any watch. A one-of-one platinum Rolex Yacht-Master sold at Monaco Legend Auctions for an astonishing €2,234,000 including buyer's premium. Yes. €2.234 million. For a watch. This extraordinary Rolex has serious history behind it. It was created for the Heiniger family — one of the most important families in Rolex history — and commemorates the manufacture of Rolex's 10-millionth officially certified chronometer movement. The unique Yacht-Master is made in platinum and features sapphire and diamond hour markers. So, to be fair, we're not talking about something you pick up at the airport because you've got twenty minutes before your flight. It's unique. It's historically significant. It's platinum. It's Rolex. But it's also €2.234 million. For that sort of money, Dad thinks it should not only tell the time, but also tell you what happens tomorrow. Harriet, meanwhile, has the much more important question: would you actually wear it? So where does a €2.234 million Rolex land on the Absolutely Monaco Ridiculousness Index? Masterpiece, investment, ultimate Monaco flex… or completely ridiculous? Dad and Harriet give their verdicts — then it's over to you.
Why it's ridiculous
Because however you dress it up, €2.234 million is an extraordinary amount of money for something whose basic job is to tell you the time. Yes, it's one-of-one. Yes, it's platinum. Yes, it has serious Rolex history. And yes, collectors clearly see it as something far more important than just a watch. But that's precisely why it belongs on the Ridiculousness Index. It costs more than many houses, you could buy an entire collection of very serious watches for the same money, and after spending €2.234 million it still tells exactly the same time as the phone in your pocket. Rare? Absolutely. Collectible? Definitely. Sensible? Not even slightly. And that makes it wonderfully, spectacularly Monaco ridiculous.
Dad's verdict
99
Crazy, crazy but rare , so I sort of get it, but not sure I get 2m get it
Harriet's verdict
98
No comment on the record.
Ridiculous or understandable?
The five questions we both have to answer.
Dad
RidiculousBest thing about it
Its a Rolex, its super rare and also its background
Worst thing about it
Its very 1990s
What I'd actually pay
€1000000
If someone handed me the cash, would I buy it at full price?
Maybe — Still not sure, Want to love it, but just cannot see it.
Harriet
RidiculousBest thing about it
super rare
Worst thing about it
Price, don't like the colour.
What I'd actually pay
€ 1000
If someone handed me the cash, would I buy it at full price?
No — I'd keep the money — Would use the money to buy a mansion.
Your verdict