Al Capone's Patek Philippe pocket watch will hit the auction block at Sotheby’s in June, carrying a pre-sale estimate of $80,000-$160,000.
The watch was passed down through generations of the Capone family before being sold in 2021 as part of a massive auction of Capone items consigned by his three surviving granddaughters to Witherell’s Auction. It sold for $230,000, smashing the pre-sale estimate of $25,000-$50,000.
Capone, whose life of crime created a legend that was referenced in movies such as “The Untouchables” and contributed to the lore of gangsters in popular culture, was known to live lavishly, owning many expensive and luxurious items.
According to his family, Capone discarded the original plain case which accompanied the watch and commissioned his own custom case from solid platinum. The minute hand on the watch is no longer intact.
Capone emblazoned 90 single-cut diamonds on the reverse spelling out his initials “AC.”
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct, the premier company for collectible culture.