Two Rolex Daytonas that when belonged to Paul Newman offered individually for about $1.1 million every in an public sale held on Friday, June 9, at Sotheby’s in New York.
Newman’s former timepieces went to bidders who engaged on the telephone with Leigh Safar, the vice chairman and specialist in Sotheby’s watches division, and the public sale home confirmed the gross sales. It’s unclear whether or not the identical bidder acquired each of Newman’s Daytonas.
A Rolex “Zenith” Daytona and a white gold Daytona worn and owned by the legendary Hollywood actor had been the highlights of a particular 134-lot sale, “Vital Watches.” Each had been estimated to promote for as much as $1 million, however the ultimate bid costs reached $900,000 for the “Zenith” Daytona and $850,000 for the white gold Daytona; gross sales charges introduced the ultimate costs to $1.143 million and $1.08 million, respectively.
The Rolex “Zenith” Daytona was offered to Newman after he received the GTS-1 class on the 1995 24 Hours of Daytona Race. The exceptional achievement made Newman, at 70, the oldest driver to win the race, a report that also stands as we speak within the Guinness World Data. In 1999, Newman, famed for his philanthropic work, determined to public sale the watch—which bore the inscription “Rolex at Daytona 24 Paul Newman Rolex Motorsports Man of the 12 months 1995”—throughout Antiquorum’s “Well-known Faces” sale. On the time, it fetched a report sale of $39,000 to profit Newman’s charity.
Newman, nevertheless, was noticed carrying it once more within the following years, sparking hypothesis {that a} shut member of the family or pal had repurchased it for him. The timepiece held particular significance and mawkish worth for Newman, being intertwined along with his racing profession, in addition to interesting to automotive fans.
That includes a black dial, the white gold automated chronograph wristwatch was the one valuable steel Daytona that Newman ever owned. It’s one among solely three recognized Daytona watches gifted to Paul from his spouse, actress Joanne Woodward. An engraving on the again reads: “Drive Very Slowly, Joanne.” The couple starred collectively within the 1969 film Successful, which sparked Newman’s profitable motorsport profession.
Newman wore this watch throughout his ultimate laps at Lime Rock Park in Salisbury, Connecticut, in August 2008, a month earlier than he handed away at 83. Friday’s public sale marked the primary time the watch was provided in the marketplace.
A stainless-steel Daytona Rolex owned by Newman was offered at public sale for $17.8 million at Phillips in October 2017. The wristwatch has a white dial, three black subdials, a pink outer monitor and Woodward’s engraving on the again: ‘DRIVE CAREFULLY ME.’
The 2 Rolex gross sales simply concluded are part of the ‘The World of Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman,’ an public sale that has been operating since Could 31 and can shut on June 13. The collection consists of greater than 300 particular person objects, together with a one-off 1998 Volvo V90 “Volvette” and the racing go well with Newman wore throughout his final skilled race in 2007 and in his ultimate lap in 2008.
