McQueen owned motorcycle and Tag Heuer and Rolex watches up for auction

On June 11th, Antiquorum Auctioneers, the world’s premier auction house for timepieces, will be auctioning two McQueen owned watches and a motorcycle also owned by the star.

The watches, a Tag Heuer “Monaco”, and a Rolex Submariner, both share an almost iconic link with the actors legend, the Monaco having been worn by him in the movie Le Mans and the Rolex Submariner being the brand and model of watch he chose to wear in everyday life.

The motorcycle, a 1929 Scott 596cc Super Squirrel, was a gift to McQueen from his friend and legenday motorcycle pinstriping artist Von Dutch.

Full details below:

Fans of the legendary actor, Steve McQueen and race car enthusiasts will be very interested in the upcoming June sale as it will include the iconic Heuer “Monaco” wristwatch previously owned by Steve McQueen and worn by him during the filming of the 1971 movie Le Mans. Steve presented the watch to his financial advisor upon his return home from filming in appreciation for financially restructuring both himself personally and his company, Solar Productions Inc.

The Monaco watch was originally launched by Heuer in 1969 in honor of the Monaco Grand Prix. The watch is a fine and unusual, square convex, water-resistant, stainless steel self-winding wristwatch with chronograph and date.

Antiquorum Experts have placed a pre-sale estimate of
$ 10,000 - $ 20,000

In addition, Antiquorum experts will also be offering Steve McQueen’s Rolex, Ref. 5512 Submariner produced in 1967. The timepiece is a fine, center seconds, self-winding, water-resistant, stainless steel diver’s wristwatch.

The watch was given by Steve McQueen to his good friend Jimmy Brucker in early 1980, to whom he also subsequently willed his airplane hangar at the Santa Paula Airport where he had stored his airplane, bikes and an extensive memorabilia collection. Most of the other items that had been given to Brucker have been auctioned, so this lot remains one of the few items that Jimmy Brucker received from Steve McQueen and kept.

Estimate: $ 10,000 - $ 20,000

Also for the McQueen fan and motorcycle enthusiast, Antiquorum will be offering The ex-Steve McQueen, Von Dutch1929 Scott 596cc Super Squirrel Engine no. Y2373A. Produced by the Scott Motorcycle Company, the present motorcycle is not only a fine example of one of the most technologically advanced machines of its day, but it was restored, painted and pin striped in the 1970s by the legendary Kenny "Von Dutch" Howard. The bike features the infamous Von Dutch ‘flying eyeball’ logo affixed in cloisonné to the toolbox, while the Scott logos are all hand-painted and finished in gold leaf. A unique feature of the bike is that Von Dutch mistakenly lettered the date on the front number plate ‘1926’ instead of the correct ‘1929.’ Having recognized the historical and artistic significance of this motorcycle, prior to his death, Steve McQueen gifted the bike back to Von Dutch so that he may personally own his masterpiece. Following its sale by Von Dutch to a collector in California, the bike came full circle when it was purchased (and now consigned for sale in the present auction) by Tonny Sorensen, owner of the Von Dutch clothing company. Until recently the bike was on display at the Motorcycle Hall of Fame as part of the “MotStars: Celebrities + Motorcycles” exhibit.

Estimate: $80,000 - $120,000

Auction:
June 11, 2009
First Session: 11 am
Second Session: 2pm

Location:
Antiquorum Auctioneers
595 Madison Avenue, 5th fl.
New York, NY 10022, USA
Tel: +1 212 750 1103