Lot 208

Heuer "Autavia Chronograph Jochen Rindt", Case No. 85791, Ref. 2446M, Cal. Val 72, 38 mm, circa 1968
A gentleman's very rare vintage wristwatch with chronograph, rotating bezel calibrated for sixty minutes and "Reverse Panda" dial. Formerly this model was worn by the famous Austrian Formula One driver and Grand Prix winner Jochen Rindt and is known amongst collectors as the "Rindt" Autavia
Case: "Second Execution", steel, screw back, original buckle. Dial: "Third Execution", black, silver-coloured and engine- turned subsidiary registers, baton hands with luminous tritium material. Movm.: 1/2 plate movement, Glucydur screw balance.
The Heuer Autavia with a black dial and light-coloured auxiliary dials was produced during the 1960s and 70s. The shape of the case as well as the dials were updated occasionally. This model features the second screw back case and the third dial version.
Collectors named the Autavia reference 2446M the "Jochen Rindt" watch. It got its name from the Austrian racing driver Jochen Rindt, who was seen and photographed wearing the watch on many occasions. Karl Jochen Rindt (born on April 18, 1942 in Mainz, died on September 5, 1970 in Monza) was a Formula One racing driver and multiple Grand Prix winner. Orphaned in Germany, he grew up with his grandparents in Graz and started for Austria throughout his life. Rindt was killed in an accident during a training session at the Grand Prix in Monza in 1970. At the time of his death he was already so far ahead in points that he became world champion posthumously, to this day the only driver ever to do so.
The black revolving bezel with 60 minute division, the black dial and the contrasting silver-coloured auxiliary dials make the "Autavia Jochen Rindt" a rare and highly sought-after chronograph among the collectors.