I Wish I Had A Time Machine

by Nicolas Zalles

Some of you might remember me from the early days of the watch community on Instagram, back when things really started to take off about ten years ago, I was posting under @AuctionLytics. For those who don’t, a bit of background: I used to write about auction results for all kinds of important watches. You can still check out the Instagram page if you're curious, although it’s been largely dormant over the last few years.

Like all of you reading this, I’m a big fan of watches. Back then, I started AuctionLytics as a way to immerse myself in the watch world, and almost immediately, I understood that phrase you always hear in collector circles: “The best part of collecting watches is the community.” I met a lot of passionate people, both collectors and dealers, and made some great friends along the way. One of the people I met early on was Matt Bain. I visited him a few times with a close friend who ended up buying some amazing pieces you’ll see below. This was back in 2017/18. After all those visits, I became friendly with Matt and his staff who were always very welcoming. For me, it was the first time seeing some of these watches in the metal, and I look back now and laugh at how starry-eyed I must have been.

An awesome Rolex Submariner 5512 with an amazing gilt dial

Just a great Nautilus 3700 bought way before the hype over the last few years

A favorite of mine, a Daytona 6263 sigma dial with perfect lume plots. Bought well below $100k.

A classic Patek 3970, one of my favorite watches on the wrist. This was a true sleeper back then.

A few years passed, and during the pandemic, watches went parabolic. I took a bit of a hiatus from posting and collecting. It felt like, in a lot of cases, passion had been replaced by hype, and that took a lot of fun for me. I'm sure you all remember, but just for fun, here are some crazy results during the height of it all.

The Nautilus 5711 and the Daytona 116500LN were without a doubt two of the most coveted watches during the pandemic. The Nautilus, in NOS condition, sold for $280,980 at a Phillips auction in December 2021. The Daytona went for $47,800, also at Phillips, but in June 2022.

Luckily, that's started to change. Prices have generally come down from the stratosphere, giving collectors a real chance to own their dream watches again, and that's actually how I reconnected with Matt. I'd been wanting a vintage Speedy ref. 105.012 forever, and I finally picked a great one up from him.  Looks like hunting for watches might be fun again!

It was during that visit that Matt mentioned he was re-launching his new site and was looking to expand the content on his blog column, and I happily offered to write for it. After thinking it over for a bit, I landed on an idea I thought could be fun: a series called "I Wish I Had a Time Machine." The concept is simple: to offer a lens into how taste and value evolve over time.

For this series, I'll be posting watch prices from throughout the years. A lot of them will inevitably give you that "damn, I should've bought that" feeling, and hence the Time Machine reference, but the idea behind the series goes beyond that. It'll explore fads and trends—some that turned out to be timeless, and others that'll make you wonder what people were thinking back then. If you're into watches, history, and a little bit of heartbreak over missed opportunities, I think you'll enjoy what's coming. 

The first column drops next week. We’ll be looking at what $150K could’ve gotten you at auction back in the year 2000. Before we get into all that though, I should probably go fire up the Time Machine. See you next week.