Somewhere in Australia, a prominent Australian tech founder has decided to part with a slice of his incredible watch collection. Not all of it. Just enough to make history.

The estimated total value of what he has consigned to First State Auctions is the largest single offering of Swiss luxury watches this country has ever put under the hammer. With auction estimates for references running from $4,000 to north of $500,000, split across two auctions this month.

This is the sort of catalogue that usually surfaces in a Geneva saleroom. Not a listing you scroll past on a Tuesday morning in Sydney. And the piece leading it is one almost nobody gets to buy.

Here’s a very small selection of the watches on offer.

Rolex Cosmograph Daytona “Rainbow”

Ref. 126579RBR

The Rainbow is the watch collectors chase and rarely catch. Yellow gold, a graduated arc of sapphires across the bezel, diamonds down the lugs, and a waitlist that functions more like a velvet rope. If you have ever wanted one, you already know you cannot simply walk in and buy it. Here, it is the opening act.

Richard Mille RM 016

Ref: RM016 AJ RG

Skeletonised, diamond-set, and unmistakably RM. The watch that tells the room you stopped asking permission a long time ago.

Rolex GMT-Master II

Ref. 116748SARU

Yellow gold, with a bezel set in sapphires, rubies and diamonds. Circa 2006, and effectively impossible to replace.

Rolex Submariner

Ref. 116618LB

Yellow gold, blue dial, the dive watch that never actually gets wet. Still the most quietly flexed Rolex in any room.

Rolex Datejust Pearlmaster

Ref. 86349SAFUBL

White gold, purple dial, a bezel of multi-coloured sapphires. Loud in the best possible way, and rarely seen on Australian soil.

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph

Ref. 26331OR

Rose gold case, blue chronograph dial, the most recognisable bezel in horology. If the Rainbow is the loud one, this is the one you actually wear every day.

First State Auctions is hosting this historic auction

A collection like this does not go just anywhere. Since 1995, First State Auctions has built its name as Australia’s most trusted house for buyers and sellers of luxury. Thirty years is a long time to get it right, and in this game, reputation is the only currency that holds its value.

Every watch in this consignment goes through a rigorous authentication process before it reaches the catalogue. First State runs an in-house laboratory, using advanced instrumentation to examine each piece in forensic detail, backed by qualified Swiss watchmakers and horologists with decades of combined experience. 

In a market where the clones get better every year, that lab is the difference between a trophy and a very expensive mistake.

How to participate in this auction

Here is the part you act on. The collection is split across two online auctions. The first opens on July 12 and closes on July 19. The second opens on July 19 and closes on July 26.

To bid on any of it, including the Rainbow, you need to register first. Registration is free, and it is the only way through the door. 

Do it now, before the rest of the country works out what has just landed.