by Brent Robillard
Between owners and eras
Maybe it’s just me, but I think there is a particular kind of tension that comes with an auction catalogue. Or perhaps it’s just excitement.
It is not the same as browsing a retailer’s site or even stepping into a boutique. Here, every watch exists in a kind of suspended state—between owners, between eras, between what it was and what it may become next. I have yet to raise a paddle in a live watch auction, but after spending time with Kaplans Auktioner—and even photographing selections from last year’s Important Watches sale—I have started to understand the appeal.
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Kaplans Important Watches Auction, Spring 2026
This year’s Spring Edition of the Important Watches auction, taking place on May 23rd, continues that thread. As with previous editions, Kaplans offers not just variety, but a carefully vetted cross-section of the vintage and pre-owned market. Each watch is examined, graded, and documented, with high-resolution imagery that allows you to study the details before placing a bid. It is, in many ways, a counterbalance to the uncertainty that often shadows the secondary market.
You can explore the full sale via the live gallery and downloadable catalogue, and for those interested in the mechanics behind it all, I would encourage a return to our earlier feature on the process and people behind Important Watches. Together, they form a useful frame for what follows: a closer look at a handful of standout lots from this spring’s offering, among more than 130 available timepieces.
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A few standouts
A Quiet Titan: Patek Philippe Ref. 3445
What could be more compelling about early automatic Patek Philippe references—particularly those that fly beneath the radar? The Ref. 3445, dating to the early 1960s, falls squarely into that category.
At 35mm, it wears with the kind of restraint that defined the period, yet inside sits the Calibre 27-460 M—one of the brand’s first full-rotor automatic movements. This example, complete with Extract from the Archives, represents the kind of watch that rewards close attention. It doesn’t announce itself as say a Nautilus does, but it is foundational Patek.
The Royal Oak, Reconsidered: Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Ref. 25654ST
If the 3445 is quiet, this is anything but.
Among the more significant lots in the catalogue is a Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar from 1988—an era when the model was still establishing its identity beyond Gérald Genta’s original design. The combination of steel construction and high complication remains one of the defining signatures of the Royal Oak lineage.
Even with a later dial, the watch carries weight. These early perpetual calendar Royal Oaks have become increasingly studied in recent years, not just as collectibles, but as markers of how complicated watchmaking adapted to the integrated sports watch.
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A Familiar Benchmark: Rolex Submariner Ref. 16610LV ‘Kermit’
The “Kermit” is the sort of watch that anchors a catalogue. It’s a piece that provides a point of entry for collectors at different levels. And it’s instantly recognizable.
Introduced to mark the Submariner’s 50th anniversary, the Ref. 16610LV bridges vintage and modern sensibilities. With its aluminium bezel, classic case proportions, and the unmistakable green insert, the “Kermit” is a watch that feels both contemporary and already historic.
For anyone who has spent time with tool watches—myself included, having owned and rotated through a number of Seamaster variants—it’s easy to see the appeal here. It is a known quantity, but one that continues to evolve in how it is perceived.
The Collector’s Chronograph: Omega Speedmaster Ref. ST 105.012
No Important Watches auction feels complete without a Speedmaster. But not all Speedmasters carry the same weight.
This example, powered by the Calibre 321 and housed in a classic “C.B” case, dates to the late 1960s—firmly within the period that defines the model’s historical significance. It is the kind of watch that invites comparison, scrutiny, and, inevitably, debate.
For collectors who have followed the trajectory of the Speedmaster—whether through modern reissues or vintage references—this is one of those pieces that sits at the centre of the conversation.
High Complication, Modern Context: Breitling Navitimer QP 48 Perpetual Calendar
At the other end of the spectrum, there are watches that reflect a more contemporary approach to complication.
The Navitimer QP 48 is one such piece. Large, complex, and limited to just 25 examples, it brings together perpetual calendar functionality with Breitling’s aviation heritage. It is not subtle, but it is technically ambitious. And in a catalogue that spans more than a century of watchmaking, that contrast is part of the appeal.
The Outlier: Wempe B-Uhr pilot’s watch
Every good auction ought to have a watch that stops you—not because it is pristine, but because it carries history in a different way.
The Wempe B-Uhr is that watch here. At 55mm, it is unapologetically large, built for legibility and function rather than comfort. These were instruments first, worn over flight jackets and used in navigation.
Condition notes matter less in this context. What you are looking at is an object shaped by its purpose, and by the era in which it was made. For anyone interested in the roots of the tool watch, it is difficult to ignore. I will be most interested to see how this one performs.
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Final Thoughts
Spending time with this catalogue, I am reminded of why auctions hold such a particular place in watch collecting.
There is opportunity here—occasionally even value—but there is also a framework. A reputable house like Kaplans does more than list watches; it provides context, verification, and a degree of confidence that is often missing elsewhere in the secondary market. For those of us who have started to explore vintage and neo-vintage pieces—whether it’s a late-90s Seamaster Professional, a 1970s Geneve, or a hi-beat Longines Ultra-Chron—that framework is, well… important.
The next step, of course, is participation.
And that is a different kind of tension altogether.
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About the author
Brent Robillard is a writer, educator, craftsman, and watch enthusiast. He is the author of four novels. You can follow him on Instagram.
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