The most expensive Panerai watches include a variety of old Panerais from the 1940’s through 1960’s and some more modern examples from the 1990’s and beyond.
Panerai has a very long history of watchmaking – with over 150 years of excellence and innovation. However, its production volume was quite low early on. In comparison to some of the Rolex and other timepiece companies, Panerai was a very niche player and didn’t impact the market to any great extent, until the 1990’s. In fact, Panerai didn’t even consider itself solely a watchmaker – rather a tool designer for the Italian military – and particularly to the Italian Navy Seal team.
The Difficulty with Valuing Panerai Timepieces Today
There is a huge difficulty when trying to price out the Panerai lineup. Particularly because, like a stock market, the Panerai prices at auction have swung so wildly up and down. Panerai had seen a massive uptick of interest at the end of the 1990’s when superstars like Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger started not just wearing Panerai for the first time, but actually promoting the brand both on-screen and off. Since then, the Panerai has been seen on the wrists of Brad Pitt, Hugh Grant, Russell Crowe, Pierce Brosnan, and even supermodel Heidi Klum and former US President Bill Clinton.
Yet, in recent years, this illustrious brand has taken a major hit in collectability and interest. There are several reasons for this. Some cite the lack of variety of the Panerai as being one factor. A general comparison of the timepiece lineups with that of Rolex, it is easy to see that Rolex has created very specific lines of watches geared towards women, men, auto racing, yachting, aviation, diving, and so on. Panerai has stuck to its Luminor and Radiomir lines, but hasn’t delineated their lines as decisively.
Essentially a watch owner that has a Panerai Luminor and a Radiomir can quit collecting and move on to another brand. This is in spite of the variety of timepieces developed in the Luminor and Radiomir lines. For example, Panerai has exceptional racing and yachting timepieces, but they just aren’t given their own lines to help market or brand them as a unique asset – as Rolex does.
Additionally, the amount of production volume has gone up – flooding an otherwise soft market for Panerai timepieces. Collectors are looking for rare pieces, and pieces that will be highly sought after so that their investment will rise each year. Rolex has kept a tight leash on its production, which is well below demand – almost guaranteeing the growth of Rolex popularity. It is not uncommon for an off the shelf Rolex to sell much greater than the Rolex advertised price.
There is also a sense that the new Panerai owners, the Richemont Group (called the Vendôme Group back in 1997), who acquired the company in the late 1990’s have lost some of the panache of the original Panerai brand. Although they have taken Panerai to places that it probably would never have gotten to without the Richemont Group, by bringing Panerai to an international audience, and developing its own in-house movements, the interest in Panerai has taken a downturn. With that said, there are some extremely valuable Panerai that still fetch a sizable return at auction.
The Most Expensive Panerai Watches Today
Rolex-made Panerai WWII from the 1940’s
Panerai actually worked with the Rolex group to develop and produce some of its earliest timepieces. Not only are these timepieces extremely rare, but because it infuses the combined expertise of both Rolex and Panerai, these timepieces have soared in value. Some estimate one of these timepieces would go for over a million at auction considering the current Rolex valuations today. However, one went for only $110,000 in recent auctions.
The reference 3646 developed in 1946 was developed for the German unit that would be trained by the Italian navy, called the Kampschwimmer. Collectors have dubbed these timepieces the “Kampschwimmer” at auction and they have quickly become the most expensive Panerai watches found anywhere. These timepieces have been extremely reliable and highly readable for the Navy Frogmen even when diving.
The dial on this watch is completely blank, dubbed the ‘anonymous dial’. Although Panerai imprinted their name on watches made for the Italian navy there is some dispute on why Panerai created an unsigned timepiece for the Germans. Perhaps the Germans requested a timepiece in traditional Spartan design.
Perhaps there was a military reason to keep Panerai, the manufacturer of military equipment, a secret if it fell into enemy hands. Or perhaps the watchmakers didn’t want their name associated with the pro-German fascist regime, or simply didn’t want to be associated with a foreign military. This timepiece gets additional collector buzz since it has ties to the Nazi regime and WWII memorabilia collectors .
Regardless, this 47mm timepiece was exceptionally made. It has a steel case and a black dial, with luminescent hour and minutes hands. The luminescent hour markers include the numerals 3, 6, 9, and 12. The movement is a hand wound Rolex Calibre 618. It came with a brown leather band and a tang buckle. The Caliber 618 was built with 17 jewels and had a power reserve of 41 hours. It beat at a frequency of 18000.
The most interesting thing about this timepiece is that Panerai essentially used Rolex’s Pocketwatch and turned it into a timepiece. In fact, if you twist the case of a standard pocketwatch and change the winding crown to the right side of the case (essentially moving the crown from 12 o’clock to the 3 o’clock position), and then add the loops at 12 and 6 o’clock, you have a wristwatch. The case was previously proven to be waterproof, which is probably the reason why Panerai reached out to Rolex in the first place.
Panerai Timepiece of the 1950’s
Panerai continued to develop tools for the military and timepieces were sparingly made in the 50’s through 1970’s. One of the more collectible timepieces was the Panerai Luminor reference 6152/1 which is a steel diver timepiece. Manufactured in 1955 with the help of Rolex, this unit has a caliber Rolex 618 powering it inside. It has a beefy 50 mm diameter stainless steel case and the locking crown that became so widely popularized by Panerai. This 20 year Rolex-Panerai relationship created a highly desirable vintage dive watch collection. The Luminor 6152-1 was produced in minimal quantity with only 33 known to ever have been created. The case is larger and could either be powered with the Rolex caliber 618 with its 17 jewels, or the Angelus caliber 240. The
Panerai replaced the Radiomir luminescent paint with Luminor – which has a tritium based lume. Still, the connection with Rolex designed movements and the Panerai – Rolex partnership was a rare find – and a partnership that lasted 20 years. This timepiece is an absolute jewel. Besides its diver’s features – extreme luminescence, and highly legible hands and hour markers, it features the Rolex case of Oyster design and the protective crown guard of Panerai design. The black dial and minimalistic markings on the dial give it an enhanced vintage appeal – along with its faded lume which has aged with grace with a golden yellow patina that collectors clamor for.
There were only 64 known timepieces created with the Panerai crown guard and Rolex movement, making this timepiece a truly rare find. However, the watch went for only $68,000 at auction in 2018 which is quite a bargain for a vintage Rolex timepiece – much less a combined Rolex/Panerai timepiece. One would fully expect the value of this rare find to escalate in the years to come.
Pre-Vendôme Panerai Slytech
The pre-Vendôme Panerai Slytech watches are exceptionally valuable since there are a limited production of Stallone’s favorite timepiece. This, PAM 5218-205A Slytech Submersible has a sapphire crystal, and a unitas 6497 movement inside. The movement is a manual wound caliber with 17 jewels. It has two styles, the 6497-1 that beats at 18,800 bph and the 6497-2 that beats at 21,600bph. It features hours, minutes and a small seconds dial at the 9 o’clock position.
This timepiece was created around 1996 and had a limited 200-piece run. It has a 44mm steel case and leather band. The luminescent hands and hour markers will make this timepiece an exquisite watch for swimming or any activities both day and night.
This timepiece is enhanced by the connection to Sylvester Stallone’s name – with the Slytech label on the dial. This raises the value to over $65,000 at some auctions. The actual Slytech worn by Stallone could go for as much as half a million dollars or more, due to the star-studded connection to one of the greatest A-list action superstars of all time. However, considering the relative rarity of this timepiece, and potential resurgence of the pre-Vendôme Panerai, the value could raise much higher in the future.
Pre-Vendôme Watches of the 1990’s
Panerai collectors truly value the Pre-Vendôme timepieces generally over the newer timepieces. Although some new timepieces may have higher initial price tags, the rarity of these early 1990’s timepieces will continue to fetch increasing interest and value over time.
Panerai PAM00006 Mare Nostrum
The Panerai PAM6 is a timepiece from around 1997 with a 42 mm stainless steel dial. This timepiece has an exceptional blue dial and a vintage tachymeter scale ending in only 280 mph, perhaps a vintage homage to the lower speeds of the early Daytona watches. It has standard pushers at the 2 and 4 o’clock positions and a winding crown, without the Panerai locking crown.
The hour markers have a natural yellowed patina. The timepiece came with blue, black and white dials and a black band but was limited to a run of only 400. However, a new run of Mare Nostrums with a blue band was launched with an additional run of 1000 pieces with a new model PAM00716. Although this may lower the actual value of the early, more rare Panerai, the lower entry price into this fantastic chronograph gives collectors a vintage chrono for a fraction of the price of a vintage Daytona.
The PAM2 was powered by an ETA 2801-2 hand wound caliber. It had a power reserve of 46 hours, used 17 jewels and beat at a rate of 28,800 bph. It does not hack, but had the standard chrono features built in. The newer PAM00716 is powered by the in-house movement – the OP XXXIII which is built from the ETA 2801-2 base including the Dubois-Depraz chronograph module.
However, Panerai collectors should keep their sights on acquiring the original PAM6, which may go for a reasonable $50,000 at auction – potentially much higher in the future.
PANERAI 202A and 201A
The Panerai 202A and its sister the 201A are some of the early versions of the Pre-Vendôme timepieces. The 202A is considered a holy grail of Panerai collecting and when we are hunting for the most expensive Panerai watches today, the 202A and 201A have to be in the conversation. Only 140 of these timepieces was created in 1993- 1994.
The yellow-orange hue of the Tritium painted luminescent hour markers help the timepiece to make a statement in daylight and in nighttime. The orange coloration was due to the lacquer added to the tritium which was required due to international regulations It has a 44mm case and PVD coated case. It has the words “Luminor Panerai” and “Marina Militare” engraved in white on the black dial. The band is a 2 piece brown leather band.
The caliber of the 202A is the Unitas 6497 which is a pocket watch movement. It has Côtes de Genève adornments and a Glucydur balance wheel with Incabloc shock protection.
The 201A was made in much greater quantity – 677 units. It was powered by a manual wound caliber 6497 with 17 jewels. Instead of the “Marina Militare” it has a Panerai logo in its place on the black dial. 202 additional units were produced for the Slytech production. The cost of these units is hard to gauge. However, it is not inconceivable that one of these timepieces would fetch $100,000 or more at auction.
Lo Scienziato Luminor 1950 Tourbillon GMT Skeletal – PAM00578
The PAM00578 is a rather new timepiece (2016) in comparison to the previous Vintage models we have thus far discussed. The gorgeous design of this skeletal timepiece reveals the Panerai artistry inside.
The titanium case and sapphire crystal on both the front and back provides 100 meters of waterproofness. It has the hours, minutes and small seconds hands. It also has a GMT function with a 24-hour hand and a power reserve indicator on the back.
The polished titanium case is a beefy 47 mm and it is powered by a hand-wound P.2005/T with 16 lignes, 31 jewels and contains both a Glucydur balance and an Incablock anti-shock device. It was developed with 277 components and provides 6 days of power reserve. Although resale value of this timepiece may not compare to a pure vintage Panerai, since this timepiece is listed at $143,000, this timepiece must be included as one of the most expensive Panerai watches ever made.
Panerai Limited Edition L Astronomo Luminor Tourbillon 1950 Equation of Time Watch
The PAM00920 is another work of art produced by the new Panerai group. This skeletal dial and matching black band and black mechanical movement is elegantly offset by the polished titanium case. The case is a large 50mm. It has an hours, minutes, date window, and small seconds hands. The GMT function is supported by a 24-hour hand. It has a sunset and sunrise indicator, an equation of time function and the moon phases. It supports 100 meters in water resistance.
The PAM00920 has a hand-wound P.2005/GLS calibre which contains a Glucydur balance and Incabloc anti-shock device. It was made with 451 components, 3 barrels, and an impressive 43 jewels. The unit uses polarized crystals to indicate the date. It commemorates the genius of Galileo Galilei.
The complexity and beauty of the made to order timepiece makes this a unique offering and helps command a price well into the 6 – figures. It is unknown at this time how many of these masterful pieces have been developed, but expect to spend between $100,000 and 200,000 or more for this beautiful piece of history – clearly making the PAM00920 one of the most expensive Panerai watches made.
Whether you own one of the most expensive Panerai watches or one of the least costly timepieces, Rubber B has 4 lines of bands that fit nearly all Panerai timepieces.
The Solid Series is the Rubber B patented “Blocked Integration” series which has a tight fitting band to the Panerai case. Rubber B has 6 luxury colors to choose from in this series.
The Swimskin Alligator series pictured above has the look and feel of real genuine alligator hide, but is actually 100% rubber, making it waterproof for all aquatic activities. Swimskin Alligator comes in both expresso and jet black.
The Swimskin Ballistic series has a Kevlar look to it, but is also 100% pure vulcanized rubber. It has the toughness and texture you would expect a rubber band to have, while maintaining a comfortable fit. Rubber B offers both a military green and a jet-black option in Ballistic.
The Vulchromantic Series is similar in design to the Solid Series. It, too, employs the “Blocked Integration” of the Solid series, but adds a complimentary stripe down the side, also in pure rubber.
Rubber B manufactures all of its bands in Switzerland with the highest specifications, made with no coatings, blends or bonding. Although these bands come with a 316L Stainless Steel Tang Buckle, the original Panerai tang Buckle fits perfectly onto these straps. For more information on all of Rubber B bands visit our Panerai page here.
