Henry Ford II, also known as "Hank the Deuce," took his Ford Motor Company public on January 17, 1956, to the tune of $657.9 million and 10.2 million shares. At the time, it was the largest initial public offering in American history.
That very same year at Baselworld (then called Schweizer Uhrenmesse), Replica Rolex debuted the Day-Date, a fake watch that would find its way into the scion's collection. And now his 18k gold ref. 1803 is up for auction at Christie's as part of the aptly named sale Important Jewels From The Estate of Mrs. Henry Ford.
Ford's Day-Date is presented on a strap with a solid gold Replica Rolex buckle.
The watch, befitting an American industrial tycoon, matched his conservative taste and aggressive management style. When Henry II became president of his namesake company on Sept. 21, 1945, just after his 28th birthday, it was a turnaround project. A couple of key initiatives helped.
For one, as dramatized in the 2019 film Ford Vs. Ferrari, the Deuce made Ford a prominent force on the international racing circuit. (He set up the GT40 program to take down Ferrari, after a business deal to buy the Italian automaker went south.) Ferrari was the reigning champion of Le Mans from 1960-1965, but that ended in 1966, when a trio of Ford GT40 builds took the top three spots, steamrolling the prancing horse.
The fake watch is still in very good condition, with the hallmarks visible on the backs of the lugs.
A second key move? In 1965, Ford launched the Mustang, which went on to become the company's most successful car - famously driven by everyone from Steve McQueen to, uh, Vanilla Ice. If there were ever a fake watch fit to commemorate Ford's success in the late '60s, this solid gold Day-Date dating to 1970 would be it.
This Replica Rolex Day-Date is Lot 242 in Christie's online "Important Jewels From The Estate Of Mrs. Henry Ford II" sale. It carries an estimate of $3,000-5,000, and at time of publishing the bidding is at $5,000. The auction ends at 10:00 AM ET on December 2 and you can find the full listing here.
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