FINE TUNES - Cathay Pacific

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BY TARA JENKINS & KAREN PITTAR GOOD TIME Step by step: Gordon Chung has been collecting watches for 18 years The thrill is in the chase for passionate watch collectors who enjoy spending quality time tracking down rare models The pride of international marketer Andrew McDonald’s sizeable watch collection is a 1963 Glycine Airman 24-hour watch. “It still has its original box with a letter from its owner inside, a United States Air Force pilot, stating he wore it on 280 fl ight missions in his F-4 in Vietnam. He was shot down over the Gulf of Tonkin and safely ejected wearing this very watch.” For countless watch fans the world over, fi nding a special piece like McDonald’s has more to do with the thrill of the chase and owning a rare piece than the monetary value of the watch. It’s a passion, for some an obsession. Hong Kong-based collector Gordon Chung says he looks for unusual pieces, shapes and mechanics, rather than buying particular brand names. “It’s my hobby. It’s what I do at the weekend. Finding a special watch is like winning a prize; it’s very satisfying. I like the complications, the mechanics and, of course, the history. I like to read about the era of the watch, how people were dressed at that time and how they’d wear their watches. A lot of watches have engravings on the back with people’s names and sometimes even addresses. It’s like holding a piece of history in your hand.” One of his favourite pieces is a 200-year-old double-cased pocket watch he bought in London. The piece is silver and opens up to reveal an intricately carved and decorative inner gold mechanism. When Chung fi rst prised open the back of the watch, a lock of golden hair fell into his hand. “The hair was cradled by part of a newspaper from the 1800s. At that time it was very common to put your relative’s hair inside your watch for good luck.” Chung’s zeal for watch collecting began 18 years ago when he was working for an advertising agency which held the Gérald Genta account. “One day I was asked to take a watch to be photographed. As I put it in my inside jacket pocket I casually asked how much it was worth. I was shocked to discover it was the equivalent of my annual salary. I held my hand over my jacket pocket for the entire taxi ride – I’m sure the driver thought I was having a heart attack.” Today Chung has a collection of more than 100 watches – each meticulously maintained and lovingly stored in a suedelined leather box – and he’s one of a growing band of watch afi cionados in Asia. “There is huge growth in collecting,” says Tim Bourne, International Co-Head of Christie’s watch department. “Numbers have gone up in such a dramatic way from 1990 when watches were just starting to become a signifi cant global collecting area. Now there are buyers participating in auctions THE CLUB 25
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FINE TUNES - Cathay Pacific

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