( CNN ) -- The most `` complicated '' handmade watch in the world has been sold at auction for an historic $ 24.4 million . The Henry Graves Supercomplication timepiece , made by the luxury watchmaker Patek Philippe in 1933 for the prominent banker Henry Graves , was sold at Sotheby 's in Switzerland . The sale smashed the world record for the most expensive watch ever sold at auction , which was previously held by the same watch . In 1999 , it was sold to Sheikh Saud Bin Mohammed Bin Ali Al-Thani of the Qatari royal family , for $ 11 million . The watch was released in 2014 to coincide with the 175th anniversary of the Swiss watch maker . The sale has benefited from the boom in Patek Phillippe auction values over the last 15 years . The term `` complication '' is a technical one , and refers to any aspect of a watch that offers a function that is not simply telling the time . The timepiece -- which has been called `` the most important watch in the world , '' `` one of the wonders of the world , '' and `` the collector 's holy grail '' -- boasts 24 such complications . These include grande and petite sonnerie ( chimes ) , which emulate the bells of Westminster ; a record of the phases and age of the moon ; sunrise and sunset indications ; a `` perpetual calendar '' that makes automatic adjustments for month and year ; and a celestial map of the New York sky . The celestial map alone is a remarkable feat of engineering . It charts the precise spacing and density of the stars , and rotates at the same pace as the sky as it would have appeared from its owner 's Fifth Avenue apartment . The watch is comprised of 900 individual parts , and , according to Sotheby 's , is the most advanced timepiece ever made without the assistance of computers . It was last wound in 1969 , yet remains in perfect working order . The Supercomplication was made as the result of a friendly competition between Graves , a member of a well-known banking family , and James Ward Packard , the luxury automobile manufacturer , to see who could produce the most impressive timepiece . Packard 's attempt was a pioneering feat . It was the first ever watch to feature a sky chart , which included 500 golden stars and was centered above his home in Ohio . However , it contained just 10 complications , making Graves ' timepiece the undisputed winner with 24 . One of the Supercomplication 's more obscure features is a sidereal time dial , which tracks the Earth 's rate of rotation in relation to fixed stars . A `` sidereal day '' , which is used by astronomers , lasts for 23 hours , 56 minutes and 4.1 seconds . It is unclear whether Graves had any use for the functionality . `` It 's amazing that they did all that without computers , '' says Larry Pattinelli , the president of Patek Phillippe . `` You are talking about one of the most collectible pieces ever put up for auction , if not the most collectible . '' The Supercomplication took Patek Phillipe eight years to produce , from its commission in 1925 to delivery in 1933 . The identity of the new buyer is unknown . 'Avant gardens ' : When art , design and a whole load of plants collide . Glamour and grieving : How the Victorians dressed for death . Intoxicating investment : How some whisky lovers are now making millions . This expressionist painted the world 's most radical nudes -- 100 years ago .
The Henry Graves pocket watch sold for $ 24.4 million . It is the most expensive watch to sell at auction , smashing its own record of $ 11 million . Made by Patek Philippe in France , it 's most advanced watch made by anyone . The watch has no functions other than telling time .