Christie’s Rare Watches sale is shaping up to be a beauty.

Taking place in Geneva in mid-May, the auction includes a curated selection of sculptural watches by horology’s biggest names. Many of the pieces were created between the 1960s and ‘70s—a period of daring innovation in which the world’s leading watchmakers experimented with design and form. 

The sale, of course, includes a Cartier Crash. The brainchild of Jean-Jacques Cartier and designer Rupert Emmerson, the asymmetrical beauty was released at the height of the Swinging Sixties. It is rumored to have been inspired by a melted Baignoire Allongée recovered from a car crash or by Salvador Dalí’s 1931 Surrealist painting, The Persistence of Memory, but the truth is, it was created to win over the trendy Londoners of the era.

The early models were manufactured by hand at the Bond Street workshop and hence are often emblazoned with “Cartier London” on the dial, while later versions were produced in Paris. This particular piece was made in London in 1990, but looks almost exactly the same as those initially produced in 1967, with a yellow-gold case and the highly coveted “Cartier London” script. Produced in extremely small numbers, vintage Crashes are near-impossible to obtain, making this an extraordinary opportunity. The lot is expected to hammer down for between $630,000 and $1,300,000.

Around the same time, Swiss jeweler Gilbert Albert, head of the Patek Philippe workshop from 1955 to 1962, was busy creating striking asymmetrical watches inspired by nature and modern art. He also designed some incredible jewelry watches, such as the Pépites avec perles (nuggets with pearls) bracelet watch (Ref. 3295) featured in the auction. Made in 1961, the watch combines textured, nugget-like gold and big, beautiful pearls. The dial is subtly hidden beneath a hinged panel and integrated into the bracelet, meaning it looks more like an extravagant bangle than a traditional timepiece. Only one other example is known—it is part of the Patek Philippe Museum—making this lot quite the find. It is expected to fetch between $26,000 and $50,000.

Over at the Crown, legendary watchmaker Gerald Genta was working on the Rolex King Midas. Released in 1962, the revolutionary model (Ref. 9630) was the most expensive Rollie and the heaviest gold wristwatch of the time. It was also a favorite among celebrities of the day, with Elvis Presley and John Wayne both proud owners. Carved from a single block of 18-karat gold, the watch features a bold, asymmetrical case inspired by Greek architecture and a left-handed crown at 9 o’clock to represent King Midas’s golden touch. Only about 1,000 King Midas watches were made, 144 of which were in white-gold, like the one featured in the auction. It is expected to fetch between $26,000 and $50,000. 

Other sculptural pieces on offer include another Rolex King Midas, a Piaget bracelet watch, a Cartier Duoplan, a Cartier ‘Coussin’ Bamboo, another Cartier Crash, a trendy Audemars Piguet “Bamboo,” another Patek bracelet watch, and an unusual Patek with fancy lugs.

The Rare Watches sale will be held on May 11 and 12 at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues. The preview will take place at the hotel from May 8 to 10.