IWC Schaffhausen “Le Petit Prince” Unique Piece to be Auctioned by Sotheby’s

By Valerie Jack | October 8, 2013

Luxury watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen is celebrating the 70th anniversary of “The Little Prince”. The Swiss manufacture has teamed up with Sotheby’s to honor Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s bestselling novel with the Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar Edition “Le Petit Prince”. This unique piece will be auctioned off during Sotheby’s upcoming Geneva auction of Important Watches to support the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Youth Foundation.

The illustrious aviation pioneer, legendary writer and adventurer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. — Writer, adventurer and aviation pioneer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

The Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar Edition “Le Petit Prince” features a platinum case and midnight blue dial. The hour and minute hands are rhodium-plated, the indices are coated with Super-LumiNova®, and the date, day and month hands have red tips. An 18K gold medallion set in the rotor bears an engraving of the Little Prince with his signature shock of blonde hair and fluttering scarf standing on his tiny planet – a depiction that is repeated in the moon phase display at 12 o’clock.

At its heart is a 51613-calibre movement with Pellaton automatic winding system and a seven-day power reserve. This one-of-a-kind timepiece features a wealth of complications, including a perpetual calendar with moon phase display, four-digit year display and other indicators for the day, date and month. The rotor bears an engraved “Unique Piece” inscription.

Sotheby’s Geneva auction of Important Watches will take place November 12. All the proceeds from the sale will benefit the Foundation and contribute to the construction of a school with a library in Cambodia. This unique piece will be sold together with a limited re-edition of the first printed copy of The Little Prince in English and a facsimile of the original manuscript in French.