Whatever you think of him, James Bond persists as a force in our culture. In honor of this iconic fictional character, Christie’s presents 50 Years of James Bond—The Auction.
Since our focus here on Longitude is watches, I’m pleased to announce that two models, actually worn by actor Daniel Craig as Agent 007 in the movies, will be included among the lots offered. And one of those definitively answers the question, “What will James Bond wear in Skyfall?”
Lot 45 (Traditional Sale): Daniel Craig wore this exact Omega Seamaster Professional Planet Ocean wristwatch in Skyfall, a unique piece made in 42mm titanium for Craig’s action scenes. It features a circular black dial with Arabic quarters, luminous tapered baton, dot hour markers and luminous hands, with a date indication. The co-axial escapement is on view through the glazed caseback.
Craig’s Bond seem to be establishing a preference for watches with this profile. Last time out, in Quantum of Solace, he wore the Omega reference 2201.50 Seamaster Planet Ocean in stainless steel.
Lot 37 (Online Sale): Daniel Craig wore this Omega Seamaster Professional Planet Ocean in the movie Quantum of Solace. In a 42mm stainless steel case with bracelet, it features a black dial with Arabic quarters, luminous baton hour markers and luminous hands. It also has a date indication, helium escape valve and engraved case back. Inside ticks the George Daniels’ invention, the co-axial escapement.
“Christie’s Presents 50 Years of James Bond – The Auction,” will be conducted in 2 phases, totaling 50 lots. Both will feature memorabilia from EON Productions, the Bond movies’ producer. Thus, authenticity is, as 007 might say, “bullet-proof.” Provenance adds to inherent commercial value – based on both overall popularity of the James Bond character and Daniel Craig’s portrayal of the world’s most famous gentleman agent.
The first 40 lots will be offered by online-only auction, without reserve. You read that right: No reserve!
An additional 10 lots will by invitation-only in a traditional auction at Christie’s South Kensington, celebrating Global James Bond Day. These are numbered lots 41-50.
Since his debut in Ian Fleming’s book Casino Royale in 1953, the not-so-secret, secret agent James Bond has had an impact on everything from cars, clothing and bon mots, to watches.
So it’s likely no surprise that the star of this auction is a 2008 Aston Martin 6 Litre 12 DBDS 2-Door Coupe driven by Daniel Craig in Quantum of Solace.
Other items included are a first edition book of Fleming’s Dr. No, a belt with gold buckle worn by Christopher Lee as Scaramanga in The Man with the Golden Gun and a La Perla bathing suit worn by Daniel Craig in Casino Royale. Yep, the auction includes swimwear.
All proceeds from the auctions will benefit 12 charities including UNICEF (Roger Moore is an ambassador), Art Fund, ORBIS (Omega and Daniel Craig are ambassadors), and ChildLine. If you’re near Christie’s South Kensington from September 29th-October 4th, all the lots will be on view. Admittance is free.
Online auction: Friday, September 28th—Monday, October 8th. Traditional Auction: Friday, October 5th at 8:30pm.
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