Corum | Watches for sale, auction results and history

A leading brand in the world of luxury watches, Corum specialises in exquisitely crafted, high-precision timepieces with sleek, avant-garde designs.

Founded in La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1955 by Gaston Ries and his nephew René Bannwart, Corum soon established an international reputation for horological excellence and innovative design, attracting the attention of watch enthusiasts and important collectors around the world.

In the 1950s, Corum made a splash with eye-catching watches including the Golden Tube (1957), the Chinese Hat (1958) and the Admiral’s Cup watch (1960). Named after the legendary sailing race, the first interpretation of the Admiral watch featured a square dial and a hand-engraved sailboat on the back of the case.

The now-iconic Corum Coin watch, also known as the Corum 20 dollar coin watch, first appeared in 1964. It featured an ultra-thin movement set between a $20 Double Eagle coin. This model has since been worn by prominent personalities and US presidents, including Ronald Reagan and George Bush.

The 1960s and 1970s saw the release of other notable Corum models including the Romvlvs, the Feather and the Rolls-Royce. The latter represented Corum’s first partnership with a prestigious automobile manufacturer. Other notable Corum men’s watches include the Corum Golden Bridge watch with its hand-engraved baguette movement and the Corum Bubble watch, which was first introduced by Severin Wunderman in 2000. With its oversized dial and large sapphire crystal case, the watch was an instant hit with collectors. Among the limited-edition Bubble models are the Corum Roulette watch and the Corum Joker watch.

The Corum Trapeze watch first appeared in 2001, followed in 2005 by the Classical Vanitas watch, which marked the world premiere of marquetry-work as applied to watch dials.

In the subsequent decades, Corum has continued to push the boundaries of watchmaking. It has developed new movements and reimagined the design of some of its heritage models to suit contemporary tastes.

Today, Christie’s sells Corum vintage watches as well as more recent models. Diamond-set Corum ladies’ watches and limited-edition men’s watches are highly prized by collectors at auction. In 2013, a rare and unusual Admiral’s Cup watch from circa 2010 sold for HKD 1,350,000, the highest Corum watch price achieved at Christie’s to date. The second highest price was achieved by an impressive Corum 18k white gold diamond watch with rubies (c. 2013), which fetched HKD 906,250 in 2016.