The vintage collector is a radically different beast than the average timepiece lover, pining over objects that are rare, quite often unobtainable and wildly expensive. And when it comes to Rolex — where modest variations in coloring, fonts and serial numbers can make for huge price differences — collectors can go seriously down the rabbit hole.
For those who are involved in vintage high-end watchmaking, the name of Alessandro Ciani is more than familiar. Alessandro Alex Ciani approached the world’s high-level trade in the late ’80s, in the beautiful setting of city of Rome, where opulent Yuppies dressed stylishly, driving powerful engines cars and, of course, wearing icon watches stigmatizing their rampant status.
A few weeks ago, the department of PP that manages the historical archive and releases extracts, has included four photographs of the mentioned watch among the information required for granting it. In principle it is good news, an indicative that will give more significance to the document, increasingly in demand for watches of average importance.
One of the recurring themes with customers, colleagues and collectors has always been the confrontation between Rolex and Patek Philippe markets. Almost like when I was a boy and humanity seemed to be split between the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, the world of collectors is similarly divided into two main strains: Rolex fan and Patek fan. Read More
I am reading my own take on Pucci Papaleo’s book “the ultimate Rolex Daytona” and I cas hardly understand what I wanted to say. What was I thinking? But also the other comments, most of them more illustrious then mine, appear just as vague. Read More
It is hard to keep impassive in front of the results in Geneva, or maybe I should say “The last auction in Geneva” In fact referring to extraordinary events there has been only one. In my opinion the only sale that can be considered ‘ game changer’ has been carried out by the sale of the 6263 Daytona Paul Newman in Antiquorum. Read More
One year from the first day of this project, I can say that the experiment of exploring new territories in which to test my knowledge and professional skills developed in Italy is finally is finally showing interesting results. Read More
…So Alex, you have decided to move to the US, near LA in California. Why, and for how long? And what will happen to your business activity in Rome? Read More
BALANCE
In my opinion the finest chronograph wristwatch of all times. I initially thought to collect several images that represent the round pushers in different metals or with the most interesting dials. In the end I decided to focus your attention primarily on one, a classic yellow dial with tachometer and gold Breguet indexes. Read More
Since my debut in the world of vintage watches as a passionate collector even before that as a professional, enamel decorated dials have always exerted an irresistible charm on me, which promptly turned into a real passion. I’ve collected a fair amount of these watches over the years, including the two represented in these pages, and I started when they were still considered nothing more then mere curiosity among collectors and dealers at the time. Read More