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JFK Watch Being Auctioned For $100K - WatchCo.com

JFK Watch Being Auctioned For $100K

[caption id="attachment_706" align="aligncenter" width="300"]Joh Kennedy "...ask how much your countrymen will spend on vintage watch..."[/caption] Before you get too upset at me for this blog's title (I have a journalism degree--I know how to get readers to scroll down.), let me first inform you that the watch in question never belonged to President John F Kennedy. He never admired it. In fact, he never even saw it.The vintage Patek Philippe timepiece actually belonged to a doctor named Kemp Clark. But he wasn't just any ordinary doctor. He was the doctor that happened to be standing over President Kennedy's body at Dallas Parkland Memorial Hospital 50 years ago. And he (according to some) used his watch to declare the President's official time of death. The authentication documents and watch itself are below:[caption id="attachment_707" align="aligncenter" width="199"]Watch-JFK This all looks like pretty official stuff.[/caption] Christie's Auction House in New York will have the item available for bidding until December 17th, so be sure you don't miss out. The catch is that if you want to successfully become the new owner of this watch, it's going to cost you six figures. That's right--a watch that may or may have been an integral part of American history will cost slightly less than a 2014 Maserati Quattroporte. You probably can't afford both. That is, unless of course you're this guy:[caption id="attachment_708" align="aligncenter" width="219"]Super_5f1590_800890 "I'll take the car--AND the watch. Wrap them up, please."[/caption]While no one can actually say for certain whether Clark used the clock in the emergency room or his watch, it was confirmed that he was in fact wearing the Patek Philippe when he declared the 35th President dead at 1 p.m. on 50 years ago on November 22, according to witnesses and historians. Clark was also the doctor who filled out and signed Kennedy's death certificate.The watch was purchased by Clark's mother and given to him as a gift in 1949. The original purchase price was 1290 Swiss Francs, or about $1400. Adjusted for inflation, that would come out to be about $14,000 today. And that's a far cry from $100,000--the price of Americana has apparently skyrocketed as much as its inflation rate.

JFK_2

The watch itself is indeed striking. It has a rich gold case, a stylish brown crocodile strap along with a chronograph function as well. Clark's name is also engraves on the case back, too. A portion of the proceeds will go to the Red Cross, so you can feel good about your money helping others as well.Interesting fact: You can actually check out the new movie Parkland that was released on October 2 of this year. The actor Gary Grubbs plays Kemp Clark in the movie--which is interesting given that he also had a role in Oliver Stone's 1991 conspiracy flick JFK. (I'm not his agent or anything, but he does seem to be getting typecast.)But if you don't have a spare $100,000 to throw around, but still would like something similar to it, check out what we have here at WatchCo. Take this Citizen Eco-Drive for instance:AT1183-07A It will never need a battery, and you can pick it up for a holiday gift for someone (or yourself) for less than $250, and it will come with Citizen's manufacturer's warranty on it as well. But if you wanted something a little less formal, we have this Nautica as well:N21024G This is one of the more stately pieces from the boating watch manufacturer. The genuine leather strap is thick and smooth, and the mineral glass is also scratch-resistant. I also personally like the offset date between the four and the five marker as well.These last two watches weren't exactly used to find out the exact minute President Kennedy died, but they won't cost you $100,000 either. So save your money for a bigger turkey or better or holiday gifts for your family and pick up one of these beauties from WatchCo......or go a different way and drive the Maserati to Thanksgiving dinner. No matter which way you go, you'll have a great holiday.
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