OMEGAMANIA

Geneva, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Du Rhône, Apr 15, 2007

LOT 45

PORTRAIT OF ?RAS TAFARI?

Omega, ?Usine de Genève? No. 6336712, case No. 6931030. Sold on January 9, 1929. Very fine, unique and historicaly important, 18K yellow gold and enamel hunting-cased, keyless pocket watch with painted on enamel portrait of Ras Tafari ?Haile Selassie?. This watch is sold with box, Certificate of Authenticity and a 2-year Omega guarantee.

CHF 30,000 - 40,000

EUR 20,000 - 25,000 / USD 25,000 - 33,000

Sold: CHF 40,120

C. Four-body, solid, 'bassine et filets', cover with central blue enamel medallion with monogram TM (Tafari Makonnen) surmounted by the Ethiopian Crown within a laurel leaf frame on a radially engraved ground, the hinged back cover with a finely painted polychrome enamel portrait of Haile Selassie in royal blue dress and surrounded by the inscription in Amharic ?His Highness Tafari Makonnen?. D. White enamel with bold radial Roman numerals, outer minute track, subsidiary seconds, gilt emblem of the ?Lion of Judah?. Yellow gold ?spade? hands. M. Fabriqué à Genève, Cal. 34 M.S., rhodium-plated, 16 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, cut bimetallic compensation balance, blued steel Breguet balance spring, index regulator. Case, dial and movement signed. Diam. 49.5 mm.


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Grading System
Grade:
Case: 3

Good
Movement: 2

Very good
Dial: 2-01

Very good

HANDS Original

Notes

Cal. 34 M.S. M = Thin S = Hunter (savonnette) Provenance: Omega Museum. A watch with identical enamel portrait is illustrated in Omegamania, by Marco Richon, Chap. 9, p. 35. Emperor Haile Selassie I (July 23, 1892 to August 27, 1975) Haile Selassie I, who was emperor of Ethiopia between 1930 to 1974, was born as Tafari Makonnen. He ascended the throne in Ethiopia in 1930, fourteen years after he led the revolution of 1916. During his 44-year reign, he survived invasion by Italy and spent several years in exile. He attempted to modernize his country. Selassie was a charismatic ruler who opposed colonial involvement in Africa and was also a founder of the Organization of African Unity. However, he was toppled by a military coup in 1974 following a severe famine and was allegedly killed by Marxist military officers a year later. He was reburied in Addis Ababa in 2000. Selassie continues to be revered by Rastafarians, who regard him as a god; he claimed to be a direct descendant of King Solomon and Makeda, the Queen of Sheba. The present watch was probably made to commemorate Ras (Prince) Tafari Makonnen` s coronation as Emperor on November 2, 1930. It was then that he adopted the throne name Haile Selassie, meaning ?Power of Trinity?. One of his emblems is the ?Lion of Judah?. This emblem can be traced back to the Book of Genesis of the Old Testament, in which the Israelite tribe of Judah used the lion as its symbol.