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A World
War II relic of historic proportions, a gold
Andreas Huber reversible
wristwatch, given to
Adolf Hitler himself most likely on
April 20,
1933,
when on his
44th birthday the dictator was named with former
Chancellor
Paul von Hindenburg, an honorary citizen of
Bavaria – the first such
honor in the history of
Germany.
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This
incredible watch has an unwavering direct provenance from a French
soldier who seized the watch as ‘spoils of war' on Friday May
4,
1945,
when his unit became the first Allied force to arrive at
Hitler's
retreat at
Berchtesgaden in the mountains of Bavaria. The watch and its
history have been researched by some of the world's most experienced and
respected watchmakers and military historians, all of whom have
concluded that it is authentic and indeed belonged to
Adolf Hitler.
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The watch
carries a movement originally made by
LeCoultre, and a case made by a
subcontractor, the assembled combination being reversible, allowing the
entire case to be rotated
180 degrees to protect the watch face when
desired or simply to display the engraving.
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The body supporting the
rotating case bears a Swiss "key" hallmark and a
German gold hallmark.
This indicates Swiss manufacture of the frame which was then exported to
Germany where it was again hallmarked as "gold" as required by law. The
yellow gold case is numbered "
2951", the white gold support frame is
numbered "
2939".
Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTOClearly,
the frame was subcontracted to another Swiss manufacturer, probably in
La Chaux de Fonds. The close difference between the serial numbers seems
to indicate very similar dates of manufacture.
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The watch is fitted with
a black lizard strap with an 18K gold pin buckle.
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The mechanical
movement is a hand-wound
LeCoultre caliber no. 410-11U, numbered
"
12755", manufactured by the
LeCoultre establishment in
December 1932.
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The dimensions of the watch are
23 x 38 mm. with the lugs,
23 x 33 mm.
without the lugs, thickness 8 mm. The gross weight of the watch is
41.48
grams.
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The front
of the watch has a black dial bearing the name "
HUBER" painted in black
lacquer with applied indexes in gold and a "railway" design also
painted all around the dial as well as around the second counter at six
o'clock. Golden sword-shaped hour and minute hands are present.
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The
reverse of the watch links this piece directly to
Adolf Hitler and the
N.S.D.A.P. On the back of the yellow gold case appears a polychrome
engraving, lacquered in red, white and black, presenting a swastika
surmounted by an engraving of the first Nazi eagle (a "
Reichsadler") and
a mobile (or inclined) swastika surrounded by a wreath of oak leaves.
Appearing below are two art deco initials
"A H", lacquered black.
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This
is a so-called negative execution in which previously hollowed-out
letters have been filled with black lacquer. The swastika is surrounded
by three dates: "
20.4.89-30.1.33-5.3.33". The first date (
20.4.89)
corresponds to
Hitler's date of birth in
Braunau Am Inn,
Austria. The
second date (
30.1.33) marks the date of his appointment as Chancellor of
Germany, when
Field Marshal Paul Von Hindenburg asked
Hitler, leader of
the
N.S.D.A.P., to form a new
German government. The third date (
5.3.33)
celebrates the date of the federal elections in
Germany which gave
Hitler access to full power.
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This
engraving is of exceptionally high quality, and its style points to its
creation by an artisan subcontracted by
Huber and already adept at
N.S.D.A.P.-related engravings.
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The watch
was commissioned by the
N.S.D.A.P. and assembled and engraved by the
highly-respected
German watch firm
Andreas Huber, in
Munich. The company
was founded in
1856 and by
1912 Huber had become the official watch
supplier to the
Royal Court of
Bavaria.
Huber quickly became a must-have
watch brand for all
German officers. As such, the brand won the
distinction of ‘the Royal watch with luminous dial for military
campaigns'.
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From
1913 to
1920, on the strength of its success, the brand
opened several other boutiques in
Berlin,
Dusseldorf and
Nuremberg. The
brand's excellent reputation grew over the years as it supplied watches
to public transport systems, various prestigious racing events, and to
the
1936 Winter Olympics. The company even introduced a ‘talking clock'.
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From the
1930s,
Huber developed several brands including
Nautica and
Secura, and
marketed several other renowned brands under its own brand name. It is a
documented fact that some major manufacturers including
Universal
Geneve,
Movado,
Cyma, and
IWC all agreed to deliver high-end movements
to
Huber and sometimes even complete watches with dials already signed
‘
HUBER'.
Huber assembled watches using these fine components from Swiss
watchmakers – which is clearly the case in this example.
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Here, the
movement was made by
LeCoultre, the case by a Swiss contractor, and the
watch frame, numbered and hallmarked, by a contractor in Switzerland.
The maker of the frame is not identified but the frame was hallmarked in
Switzerland by an organization of manufacturers. It was then shipped to
Germany where it was again hallmarked for its gold content, as required
by law. The dial may have been fabricated by
Huber, or may have been
"personalized" using a "blank" provided by a manufacturer.
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Jaeger-LeCoultre
advises it has no production records regarding this watch. No wartime
documents can be obtained from Andreas Huber – their factory was bombed
and subsequently burned down during World War II.
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Before
his appointment as chancellor in
January 1933,
Adolf Hitler had already
received many gifts from friends, party members,
German companies, and
heads of state. From
March 1933, having become Chancellor of
Germany,
gifts to
Hitler poured in. The use of the first
N.S.D.A.P. Reichsadler
dates the watch to no later than
1934, when the "second pattern"
political Reichsadler came into common use. It is doubtful that the use
of this eagle for any purpose beyond official
Nazi Party business would
have been authorized at that time. It is therefore very likely that this
watch was offered to
Adolf Hitler by the hierarchy of the Nazi party or
the S.A. following the
1933 elections or during the
Bavarian
citizenship ceremonies of
April 20,
1933.
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On
May 4,
1945, about thirty
French soldiers belonging to the
Regiment de Marche
du Tchad, a unit of the 2nd
Armored Division commanded by the brilliant
General Philippe Leclerc, stormed the
Berghof, barely ahead of the
American troops of the 3rd
Armored Division. Among the members of this
unit was
Sergeant Robert Mignot who with his comrades quickly gained
access to
Hitler's secondary residence and the Eagle's Nest, both
abandoned by all the occupants and guards. They also discovered the vast
system of tunnels and bunkers under the house. This is probably where
this watch – and other valuables – were found and taken away by the
French as war souvenirs.
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Reports written at the time, contemporary
documents and diaries, as well as statements from veterans, clearly show
that these
French soldiers certainly had ample time on the spot to hunt
for any ‘spoils of war' they could find, limited only by what they
could carry in their backpacks. Of course, items marked with
Hitler's
name were considered the best prizes, and many of these historic relics
have come to market in the intervening years.
Sergeant Mignot returned
to
France with the watch and resold it over time to his cousin, our
consignor's grandfather. It has remained in the exclusive possession of
the Mignot family and that of our consignor since its discovery and has
never been offered for sale before. Sergeant Robert Mignot's service
record with the 2nd
Armored Division is also fully documented with
records, documents, photographs and a statement from a fellow soldier,
with copies available to potential bidders. A detailed letter of
provenance from Mignot's daughter is also present.
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The watch
is in exceptional condition. The watch has been examined by an expert
intimately familiar with the movement installed and he has advised that
it appears that only a cleaning to remove dried oil is required. He
mentioned no other faults – as would be expected. The reptile band is
frayed at one end. It can be kept or replaced, as desired.
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Extract from the reference book: “Les
Montres-Bracelets Cent Ans d'Histoire” by H. Kahlert-R.
Mühe and L. Brunner, published by
Bibliothèque des Arts, Paris.
Letter from Jaeger-LeCoultre (translated from the original French) 22 June 2017
“…To follow up on your visit to the factory on Tuesday June 6, 2017 concerning the identification of a timepiece, we are able to confirm that on the basis of the photos you have shown us it is indeed a Reverso model. The movement is a LeCoultre 410 or ITU movement. It bears the number 12755 and was produced in our factory in December 1932. However, the word
LeCoultre originally engraved on it has been erased and replaced by the name A Huber. This transformation was carried out a posteriori, after the watch had left our factory. Furthermore, we can tell you that we have no trace of a client A. Huber in our archives. We cannot determine ourselves anything on the engraving affixed to the back of the watch. In any case, it was not produced within the factory since at that time the LeCoultre establishments did not have an engraving workshop…”
[Signed] Stephane Belmont
Potential bidders are invited to request the fully-detailed, illustrated
PDF document
containing letters of provenance, a complete description of the watch,
an appraisal and expertise by a world-renowned watch historian and
auction consultant, multiple evidentiary photographs, excerpts of
documents, period advertisements, a study of hallmarks, a comparative
analysis of similar watches and related correspondence, Sergent Mignot's
archives, as well as those documenting his presence at the
Berghof,
appraisals, and more. Printed copies of this voluminous document are
available at a nominal cost.
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While
Hitler's correspondence, his silverware, and even his paintings and
articles of his clothing and uniforms are regularly offered for sale, in
only a few instances in a lifetime would one see a piece of
Hitler's
jewelry come up for auction.
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And a spectacular wristwatch, especially
given to the dictator by his most ardent supporters, has never seen the
light of day. It is an absolutely unique and important historical
object. This is a rare opportunity for the discriminating collector to
obtain one of the most important timepieces ever created.
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Estimate: USD 3'000'000 - 4'000'000
Starting bid: USD 1'000'000
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For more information, please visit www.alexautographs.com