American classic car nuts have the Monterey Car Week. Over in Britain they have a more gentrified gathering at Hampton Court Palace called the Concours of Elegance, at which A. Lange & Söhne is the official partner.
It may be too late to book a flight to the September 2 to 4 event, but a big story will break at the show: the unveiling of a unique 1815 Chronograph that will be auctioned to raise money for The Prince’s Trust, a charity that gives young people a leg-up and is run under the patronage of the Prince of Wales.
The one-off 1815 Chronograph Hampton Court Edition will be auctioned on November 6 at the Geneva Watch Auction XVI by Phillips.
The white gold watch has a black dial with silver sub dials and golden Arabic numeral hours, railway track minute and tachometer scales.
It has a sapphire crystal case back, exposing the hand-wound Lange L951.5 flyback chronograph movement.
The crystal is protected by white gold cover engraved with the Concours of Elegance logo.
It goes to auction without an official estimate, at this stage. The core collection 1815 Chronograph retails for $67,800.