Francis Ford Coppola’s personal F.P. Journe FFC prototype shattered expectations at Phillips’ New York watch auction today when it achieved price of US$10.8 million including fees.

One of the most talked-about lots this auction season, FFC’s FFC is the most expensive watch sold in 2025, and now the most valuable example of independent watchmaking by some margin.

Big result in the Big Apple

Despite chilly weather in New York, the action in the saleroom quickly turned hot. Auctioneer Aurel Bacs opened at US$1 million, but the bid instantly jumped to US$2 million.

Several bidders then piled on, but the contest condensed to just four phone bidders past the US$4 million mark, including bidders represented by Tadzio Nuno and Paul Boutros, of Phillips’ Geneva and New York offices respectively.

The action then settled into a head-to-head between bidders represented by Alex Ghotbi and Isabella Proia, once again of Geneva and New York respectively. Mr Ghotbi emerged the winner with a US$9 million bid, which brought the total to US$10.755 million with fees.

The bidding was notable for being entirely on the phone – though one bidder was in the room but bidding on the phone – and also for being driven by clients outside of Asia.

A record

The result makes Mr Coppola’s prototype — one of only two made, and the only one in private hands — the most valuable wristwatch from an independent watchmaker ever sold at auction, exceeding the US$8.36 million achieved by the landmark F.P. Journe Tourbillon à Remontoir d’Egalité “15/93” prototype sold last year.

The celebrity aspect of the FFC no-doubt contributed to the big result; Mr Coppola’s connection to the watch gave it outsized visibility that extended to mainstream publications around the world that don’t usually bother covering watch auctions. The extra notoriety may have increased the trophy status of FFC’s FFC.

The other FFC

Mr Coppola’s Chronomètre à Résonance, the watch that started it all, also did well, selling for US$584,000 — more than double the high estimate, going to a European collector. This watch was given to Mr Coppola by his late wife Eleanor, and introduced the acclaimed director to the brand.

Mr Coppola became enamoured with the brand, and famously invited Mr Journe to his Inglenook winery, where the pair had the fateful conversation that led to the creation of the FFC. The Resonance is arguably significant in the history of F.P. Journe, and something of a bargain.