Audemars Piguet, cushion shaped single-button chronograph, circa 1930 with an estimate of CHF200,000 - 400,000 ($260,000 - $510,000)Christie'sAn exceptionally rare single-button chronograph wristwatch made by Audemars Piguet in the 1930s is expected to be among the highlights of Christie’s Geneva Rare Watches auction on May 11–12 at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues.Known as the “Coussin Tortue,” model no. 41,849, the watch was produced around 1930 for the American market. Sold in 1935, it has remained in the original owner’s family for more than 90 years and is appearing at auction for the first time. It carries an estimate of CHF 200,000–400,000 ($260,000–$510,000).Regarded by both the auction house and the brand as one of the rarest wrist-worn chronographs ever produced by Audemars Piguet, the timepiece represents a pivotal moment in the transition from pocket watches to wristwatches.In 1930, Audemars Piguet produced just six movements for its earliest chronograph wristwatches, at a time when pocket watches still dominated. The first example, housed in an 18k white gold case, was sold that same year, while two platinum-cased versions were sold in 1935 and 1937. Although three of these chronographs are recorded, only two are confirmed to have survived. The remaining three movements from the original batch were cased and sold more than a decade later, according to the watch brand’s archives. The original retail price was 280 Swiss francs.The watch’s modernist Art Deco design is both restrained and innovative. Its monopusher mechanism integrates the start, stop and reset functions into a single button within the winding crown. The brushed platinum cushion-shaped case, made by the Geneva casemaker Wenger, frames a two-tone gray and white dial recorded in the archives as being crafted from gold.MORE FOR YOUAfter being consigned for sale, the watch returned to Audemars Piguet for an extensive restoration completed in April 2026.In a video produced by Christie’s, Sebastian Vivas, Audemars Piguet’s Heritage and Museum’s director, described the piece as one of the first three monopusher chronographs made by the company—and one of only six produced by the brand since its founding in 1875.“We knew these documents existed. We had found some documents in the archives, but we had never seen them,” Vivas said, speaking from the Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet. “It’s a very important watch.”While Audemars Piguet had long produced monopusher chronographs for pocket watches, miniaturizing the complication for a wristwatch presented a significant technical challenge. “To reduce the size and integrate this in a very small 32- or 33-millimeter wristwatch is a real challenge,” Vivas noted.He also emphasized the importance of the design. “At the end of the Art Deco period in the 1930s, the quest for form and the perfect alignment between the bracelet and the case shape is nearly achieved with this cushion-shaped watch,” he said. “The balance—the colors, the proportions—everything is is perfect and that is probably the reason why it stood in the same family as far as we know for so many decades.”In the same video, Audemars Piguet watchmaker, Malika Schüpbach, said she spent more than 120 hours restoring the timepiece. One of the most difficult tasks involved refitting a pivot on a wheel that broke during repair, requiring her to remake the component entirely due to the lack of original parts.Alongside this historic lot, the sale will feature several items owned by music legend Quincy Jones, including:A Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 3700/1JA (1981), estimated at CHF 100,000–200,000 ($130,000–$250,000) A Girard-Perregaux World Time Control “Shadow,” estimated at $6,400–$13,000 A 22k gold and black diamond-set pendant gifted by Bono for Jones’ 80th birthday, estimated at CHF 10,000–15,000 ($13,000–$19,000) The top lot of the sale is expected to be a Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 5711/1A-018 retailed by Tiffany & Co., featuring the coveted “Tiffany Blue” dial. The 40mm watch is inscribed on the caseback “170th Anniversary / 1851–2021 / Tiffany & Co. - Patek Philippe.” It carries an estimate of CHF 800,000–1.4 million ($1 million–$1.7 million).