97th Auction

2018/5/12

Lot 97

Heuer "Autavia" / Abercrombie & Fitch Co., Case No. 128749, Ref. 2446C Tachy, Cal. Val 72, 40 mm, circa 1969
A very rare vintage "cult" wristwatch with chronograph, rotating bezel with tachy scale, compressor case and "Reverse Panda" dial, retailed by Abercrombie & Fitch. The 2446C is the second generation manual-wind Autavia.
Case: steel, "compressor" snap back with engraving: "Ted Yardley 12-25-69". Dial: black, silver-coloured and engine- turned subsidiary registers, baton hands with luminous tritium material.
The two companies Heuer and Abercrombie & Fitch had a very strong and personal relationship that had its roots in Jack Heuer’s work placement in New York with Abercrombie & Fitch’s watch department in the 1950s. At the beginning of his placement Jack Heuer stayed with Walter Haynes, who was chairman of Abercrombie & Fitch at the time.
Ted Yardley was an American actor who played Officer Cabot in the 1974 film "Challenge to Be Free".
Only a very small number of the Heuer Autavia reference 2446C with black dial and light auxiliary dials was produced from 1968 and 1971, making it a rare and highly sought after collector’s chronograph watch.
The C designation after the reference 2446 stands for "compressor" and refers to the snap-back construction holding the case back in place with a large C clip. It is sealed with a large rubber ring.
The bezel of the Autavia 2446C came in three variations because the watch was produced for racing as well as for aviation; the most common bezel is the one with a minute and hour display. Less common are the hour time zone bezel, which is primarily intended for pilots and this rotating tachy bezel, which is used in racing to measure average speed.

Sold

estimated
6.50012.000 €
Price realized
13.300 €