THE LITTLE PRINCE RAISES FUNDS FOR THE ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPÉRY YOUTH FOUNDATION
Geneva, 12 November 2017 – Today, Sotheby’s auctioned an exclusive timepiece by IWC Schaffhausen: the Big Pilot’s Watch Annual Calendar Edition “Le Petit Prince” went under the hammer, garnering a winning bid of CHF 38,000. A portion of the proceeds of this auction will benefit the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Youth Foundation, in order to boost its expansion into the USA and reach its goal of offering training and educational projects to even more young people throughout the world.
The Big Pilot’s Watch Annual Calendar Edition “Le Petit Prince” (Ref. IW502705) features an 18-carat white gold case and a blue dial powered by the IWC-manufactured 52850 calibre. This unique piece has a blued movement and an ornate, hand-painted rotor, adorned with a blue floral pattern, which takes the form of the little prince – from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s story “Le Petit Prince” – on an asteroid. The movement is elaborately coated with metal oxides to give it its blue colour, an effect which is achieved using the process of chemical vapour deposition (CVD). “I am delighted that we are able to use the proceeds raised from auctioning this exclusive Pilot’s Watch to support the important work of the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Youth Foundation again this year,” says Christoph Grainger-Herr, CEO of IWC Schaffhausen.
I am delighted that we are able to use the proceeds raised from auctioning this exclusive Pilot’s Watch to support the important work of the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Youth Foundation again this year.
THE FOUNDATION IS SET TO GO STATESIDE
This auction in Geneva was the fifth IWC has carried out in cooperation with Sotheby’s Geneva. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the foundation, helping it to establish itself on the North American continent. It is no coincidence that this charitable institution is aiming to cross the Atlantic. After all, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry himself had a strong connection to America: he flew a Lockheed P-38 Lightning on multiple occasions and wrote his story “The Little Prince” in New York.
The Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Youth Foundation was established in 2008 by the descendants of the French author and pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. It offers various training and educational programmes designed to help children and adolescents living in difficult conditions get a better start to working life. The main focus of the foundation’s activities is on fighting illiteracy and supporting young people with visual impairments by conveying knowledge about Braille.
IWC Schaffhausen is the Engineer of Watchmaking. In 1868, the American watchmaker and engineer Florentine Ariosto Jones established the ‘International Watch Company’ in Schaffhausen in the German-speaking part of Switzerland. By combining the best of human craftsmanship and creativity with cutting-edge industrial technology and processes, he laid the foundation for IWC’s unique engineering approach to watchmaking.
IWC’s distinctive and pure design is brought to life through collections ranging from elegant dress watches to sports and luxury sports watches, notably the Portugieser, Portofino, Pilot’s Watches and Ingenieur. Over its more than 150-year history, IWC has earned a reputation for creating professional instrument watches and functional complications, especially chronographs and calendars, which are ingenious, robust and easy to use.
A pioneer in the use of titanium and ceramic, IWC specializes in performance materials such as Ceratanium®. IWC’s advanced engineering division XPL develops technologies that enhance the durability of mechanical watches and extend their applications to environments with extreme conditions such as jet aviation and human spaceflight.
IWC is a leader in luxury watchmaking, crafting timepieces built to last for generations and continuously improving every aspect of how it manufactures, distributes and services its watches responsibly. Empowering the next generation of engineers, the brand also partners with organizations that work globally to support children and young people. IWC. EngineeredTM.