Francis Ford Coppola to auction his rare $1 million watch: Here’s what makes it special

Francis Ford Coppola, the celebrated director of The Godfather trilogy, is auctioning a collection of seven rare watches, including one of the most fascinating modern timepieces ever made — the FFC. Designed Coppola himself in collaboration with the Swiss watchmaker F.P. Journe, this horological creation merges cinematic imagination with mechanical genius. Francis Ford Coppola is set to auction his $1 million rare watch.(Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) As per a report The New York Times, Coppola announced the auction during a Zoom call from Rome, explaining his motivation with striking honesty: “I need to get some money to keep the ship afloat.” The sale, scheduled for 6 December through Phillips, has drawn global attention from collectors and film enthusiasts alike. The FFC: A watch that tells time handThe centrepiece of Coppola’s auction is the FFC, a watch that defies convention. Created in 2014 with François-Paul Journe, it features an openwork design — meaning the intricate internal mechanics are exposed rather than hidden a traditional dial. At its heart lies a gloved mechanical hand that displays the hour moving its fingers in various configurations. The watch was released commercially in 2021 and is priced at around $1 million. However, its rarity and cultural significance have driven prices much higher. A prototype of the same model sold for nearly $5 million at the Only Watch charity auction in Geneva in 2021, sponsored Prince Albert II of Monaco. Rarity and prestigeCoppola admitted he wore his own FFC “only a handful of times,” citing that it was too expensive to insure. According to Paul Boutros, deputy chairman and head of Phillips Watches for North America, bidding for Coppola’s FFC will begin around $1 million — less than one percent of what his recent film Megalopolis cost to make. Coppola’s other Timepieces on the BlockAlongside the FFC, Coppola is offering several other pieces from his private collection, including two Patek Philippes — a Calatrava (estimated at $6,000 to $12,000) and a World Time ($15,000 to $30,000) — as well as a Blancpain Minute Repeater ($15,000 to $30,000), an IWC Chronograph ($3,000 to $6,000), another F.P. Journe ($120,000 to $240,000), and a Breguet Classique ($4,000 to $6,000). From art to time: Coppola’s creative legacyCoppola has always invested both his creativity and finances into his passions, viewing watchmaking much like filmmaking – a blend of imagination and precision. Although he is selling most of his collection, he plans to keep his Audemars Piguet Perpetual Calendar “to give to my great grandson,” he said. His Rolex, he added, was gifted to “a neighbour who was a hero in Afghanan.”