Representatives of the Russian government have denied that a Patek Philippe watch on sale at a Monaco auction has been owned by president Vladimir Putin.
The watch is photographed for the auction catalogue of the Monaco Legends auction organised by Antiquorum with name of Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin named on the certificate of guarantee for the rare timepiece.
The watch is a Patek Philippe Grand Complication Ref. 5208P-001 minute repeater, monopusher chronograph and instantaneous perpetual calendar with moonphase in a 42mm platinum case.
It would have cost almost one million Swiss francs when new, according to experts.
Associating the timepiece to Mr Putin might increase its value at auction, but Pravda, the official news outlet of the Russian government, denies the connection.
Representatives for the Kremlin administration said that the information about “Putin’s watch” on an auction was fake, a Pravda report states.
“Of course, such a situation could occur: a wealthy person could order the watch as a gift to Putin, but the president could not accept it for some reason. As a result, the watch appeared on an auction as the “Putin’s watch” for profit. It could also be possible that the original buyer of the watch simply wanted to sell it at a higher price,” the Pravda article suggests.
