Imagine a cushion shaped mono-pusher chronograph wristwatch from a storied brand like Vacheron Constantin, that dates to 1930. A watch such as this is surely a valuable one and the type of thing an auction house like Sotheby’s, Christie’s, Antiquorum, or Bonhams would love to have. In fact, the Vacheron you see above, the reference 2990 mono-pusher from 1930 is in fact a watch that was sold by Christie’s in May of last year (2011) for over $56,000. In other instances, examples for the 2990 mono-pusher from VC has broken $100,000.
But, if you happen to be cruisin the ‘Bay (that’s “browsing watches on eBay” for those who don’t speak watchnerd), and enter “vintage Vacheron,” you will come across a watch that looks very much like this one. Actually, the seller claims it is this one – a Vacheron Constantin reference 2990 mono-pusher chronographer in a solid gold cushion style case from 1930. And, it’s only at $2,175! What a bargain!
Except it’s a total fake. Now you may be wondering, who in their right might would fake a watch this obscure – a mono-pusher from 1930 that, according to most people, was made in less than ten examples? This is not like a fake Rolex where somebody would buy it on a whim because they know exactly what it is, but anyone interested in buying a watch like this is a real collector, someone who knows what to look for and how to find more information on anything he’s thinking about buying. And yet, there are 47 bids on this watch!