Omega Does a Charity Auction: Collects $1.5 Million

OMEGA, in partnership with Sotheby’s Hong Kong, joined hands to hold a charity auction released to celebrate OMEGA’s role as Official Timekeeper of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. All 35 of the timepieces, collectively known as the OMEGA “Beijing 2008, Unique No. 8 Collection”, were auctioned off as part of Sotheby’s Important Watches Autumn Sale 2008 yesterday at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. The Collection was sold for HK$9,620,000 (1,231,071 USD)*
The collection is based on the “lucky number 8” concept. It includes an example of every OMEGA timepiece licensed for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad in Beijing. The watches are delivered in a striking, black walnut tower with an exclusive finish. Popular belief in China holds that the number 8 is fortuitous, so the watches representing the Beijing Olympic Collection are housed in the black tower in eight separate drawers, placed one above the other reminiscent of a rectangular pagoda. So one would surely not go more superstitious than this!!!

This one-of-a-kind Collection is composed of 8-numbered 32 Limited Edition watches in the OMEGA Beijing Olympic Collection, alongwith three “Olympic Split Seconds Chronograph 1932” pocket watches, also numbered 008 in their limited editions of 100 pieces. It is surely the elitist collection of the week.

Via luxist / omegawatches