Monaco Revue -- The celebrity and lifestyle magazine with purpose

Social Diary by Candace Durocher

A very generous evening in Monaco

Seems like September 20 was named National Charitable Auction day in Monaco. On the day, not just one, but two quite exceptional auctions brought international bidders of some means to the principality.

In the early evening, watch collectors gathered under a tent of the Monaco Yacht Show for the second edition of the Only Watch auction, a sale of unique and first-in-series timepieces by 35 of the world's most prestigious watchmakers.

The first such offering two years ago raised 1.9 million euros to help combat Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a genetic illness that strikes mainly young boys, and for which no cure is yet available. When the gavel came down for the last time on Thursday, horology

enthusiasts had splashed out 2,756,500 euros (almost US$4 million).

Fierce bidding in the room, and around the world via phones and the Internet, saw a titanium Nautilus by Patek Philippe go for 525,000 euros, the highest sale price of the evening. The second most prized offering was a watch by deWitt which doesn't even exist yet; for 400,000 euros, the winner walked away with a promissory note on the making of the instrument in the form of a photograph signed by event patron Prince Albert, Monaco's sovereign. By comparison, the bidders who purchased pieces featuring the Prince's thumb print and his palace picked up bargains at 38,000 and 30,000 euros, respectively.

Later in the evening, the monarch dashed off to The Blue Auction, a black tie affair held in the elegant and appropriate setting of the Oceanographic Museum, where fish swirled over the heads of the invitees as they (the guests, that is) sipped cocktails.

Event organizer, the ever sartorial Monaco businessman Francesco Bongiovanni, president of the Monaco-Asia Society, explained that the funds raised are to be used to help conserve marine life recently discovered off the coast of Indonesia. The unique lots were intangible but highly valued by those attending the invitation-only gala. They were vying for the opportunity to give their name or a name of their choice to the marine life for all posterity.

The monies raised will be used to fund eight 10-month fellowships to encourage young Indonesian scientists to make a career in biodiversity; to purchase a patrol ship and fund its operation for three years; and to fund a four-year program through which a ship will visit 88 remote villages to encourage residents to appreciate and conserve the marine life around them. The budget for these programs was just under US$1,940,000.

The event organizers said funds raised above that amount were to be divided up among Conservation International (which discovered the species and is administering the environmental programs) and two Monaco organizations — the Prince Albert II Foundation and Act for Nature (to be used by those two organizations for programs aimed at protecting the environment of the oceans, and/or protecting Indonesian biodiversity in general).

I was unable to stay to the end of this event, but was pleased to read in the Washington Post that the conservation programs were fully funded, with the evening's takings amounting to US$2,015,000.

ADD YOUR COMMENTS

Comments to date: 5. Page 1 of 1.

Jessica, Ontario	Posted at 1:42pm on Friday, November 2nd, 2007
I think it's great that the monies raised will be used to fund 10-month fellowships to encourage young Indonesian scientists to make a career in biodiversity!
Kyle, London, England	Posted at 12:35pm on Thursday, September 27th, 2007
Is there some place online people can go to see what names have been given? Was it something wierd like hemiscyllium yahooi or paracheilinus googlei? A monkey was named after a website in some auction a few years back.
Whitney1986, Staten Island	Posted at 12:56pm on Tuesday, September 25th, 2007
Somebody please tell me that last comment isn't true because if it is, it shows, at best, comtempt for the locals and their knowledge.
Anwar, Jakarta	Posted at 8:07am on Saturday, September 22nd, 2007
It's good to hear money is being raised to conserve wildlife in Indonesia. But I have a problem with the idea that foreigners have "discovered" new species. They were already known by locals and already have names.
Vanessa, Paris	Posted at 7:24am on Saturday, September 22nd, 2007
Monaco sure seems to do a lot for charity.

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