The dial of the Rolex Oyster Perpetual is decorated with the map of India with the date 26 January, 1950 inscribed on it. The map of India on the dial includes the corridor of land linking India to Afghanistan and Nepal. Besides Prasad`s wristwatch, the Geneva auction has a selection of rare timepieces dating from 1574 to today including another Rolex owned by the first German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer.
Prasad`s watch is estimated to fetch between between USD 222,000 to USD 444,000, the auction house said. Prasad was the first president of independent India, an office he served for 12 years until 1962. "It was commissioned together with a quasi-similar watch in 1948 and delivered to the Rolex agent in Bombay in February 1949. The other watch (last sold by Sotheby`s Geneva in May 2003) was presented to the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru on the occasion of the inauguration of the Republic of India.
The other exceptional writwatch that goes under the hammer is engraved on the back with Adenauer`s name, and is accompanied by its original leather folder. Among the items that go on sale will be a set of luxurious pocket watches created for the Indian market in the 19th century. One of them is an 18K yellow gold and enamel keyless chronograph watch made in 1890, and featuring a portrait of Maharaja Jaswant Singh II, the ruler ruler of the Jodhpur State from 1873 until 1895, the auction house said.