Phillips Auction Features Prototype of Journe Watch Codesigned by Francis Ford Coppola

By Annie Davidson Watson | December 01, 2025

The Phillips watch auction coming up this weekend in New York will test the market’s appetite for independent horology, as one of its headline lots is a watch made by François-Paul Journe in collaboration with filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, estimated to sell for over $1 million.

F.P. Journe’s FFC model (pictured at top) eschews traditional hands in favor of a five-fingered automaton to indicate the hours—a mechanism developed by Journe based on a concept Coppola pitched during a dinner at his Napa Valley winery. This is the original platinum prototype for the watch (which was recently released in its final production version), engraved with Coppola’s and Journe’s names on the back and featuring the human-hand-shaped automaton in blackened titatnium.

*Francis Ford Coppola, legendary director of* The Godfather, in Rome earlier this year

While the Coppola prototype provides star power, a pair of wristwatches from Philippe Dufour is expected to draw intense bidding during Phillips’ Dec. 6–7 auction, the 13th in its New York Watch series. The Dufour pieces are the first serial production models for two of the watchmaker’s most famous creations, Duality and Simplicity, and each is etched with “No 01.”

The Dufour Duality, estimated to sell for $1 million to $2 million, is particularly rare: Duality was originally intended for a run of 25, but only 10 were manufactured due to the difficulty of regulating its double-escapement mechanism. Simplicity (estimate of $300,000 to $750,000) marked the debut of a larger case size, 37 mm, for the brand. Both lots date to around 2000 and come from the original owner.

Phillips’ catalog also lists high-value vintage Rolex inventory, including a “Paul Newman” Daytona, a ref. 6036 Jean-Claude Killy, and a ref. 6265 Daytona featuring the Omani “Khanjar” crest. The latter, unlike many similar models circulating on the market, has a confirmed provenance—from a U.S. Air Force pilot who flew for the Dubai royal family in the 1970s.

The New York Watch Auction, taking place at 432 Park Ave., will conclude Phillips’ 10th-anniversary year. Its watches department has generated more than $200 million in annual sales for four consecutive years, according to the auction house.

(Photos courtesy of Phillips)

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