Back in April, a very important Mido wristwatch was sold in a Stanislas Machoïr auction for about $340,000 USD! While most Midos sold in auction certainly do not fetch a price like that, this one was special as it was owned by Ettore Bugatti, the founder of automobile brand, Bugatti, himself.
Bugatti was always close to watch brands, we’ve mentioned their connection to Breguet and the watches Breguet made for Bugatti. Well, Ettore Bugatti himself ordered multiple Midos, specifically the ‘radiator grill’ models, in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Bugatti ordered these pieces for friends and family as they resembled the grill of a Bugatti car, himself keeping the only model with a gold bracelet, while the others all had a leather strap. Ettore’s was the ‘Mido pour Bugatti’ No. 261.492, uniquely fitted with an integrated Milanese mesh gold bracelet, that was sold in April in Toulouse.
The Mido for Bugatti in motion / Credit: Mido
1929 Mido ad showing their ‘radiator grill’ watches
Mido later patented this design as it was fairly popular, especially as automobiles were growing in popularity at the time. This Mido for Bugatti is a very important and remarkably preserved timepiece. Important not only for its connection to Mido’s history, but for clearly showing the linkage between watch and car collecting going back almost 100 years!
By: Andres Ibarguen