Hindman to Hold First NYC Auctions Next Month
Its first sale will feature the watch collection of scientist and entrepreneur Glen de Vries, who flew to space with William Shatner.
![For its first New York sale, Hindman Auctions will offer the watch collection of entrepreneur Glen de Vries, who was one of the non-astronaut passengers on the second manned flight made by Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ space tourism company. De Vries is pictured in his official pre-spaceflight portrait, as is one of the watches up for auction, a titanium De Bethune Ref. DB28XP. (Images courtesy of Hindman Auctions) Glen de Vries and his De Bethune Ref. DB28XP watch](https://uploads.nationaljeweler.com/uploads/d73a671f979d8ef379ae99e097883753.jpg)
“Time & Space: Watches from the Collection of Glen de Vries” is scheduled to take place Oct. 18 at 21 Greene St. in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood.
De Vries was working as a research scientist at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in the mid-1990s when he co-founded Medidata, a technology company that develops software for clinical trials.
He also coauthored “The Patient Equation: The Precision Medicine Revolution in the Age of COVID-19 and Beyond,” which came out in 2020.
Outside of the medical field, de Vries had a lifelong fascination with space travel, an interest that took him places few ever get to travel.
He was one of the civilian passengers aboard the second manned flight of the Jeff Bezos-owned Blue Origin New Shepherd rocket, boldly going into space alongside William Shatner in October 2021.
De Vries was killed a month later when the small plane he was traveling in crashed in a wooded area of Sussex County, New Jersey. He was 49.
Hindman Auctions said his collection of more than 100 watches from 30 different watch brands, many rare and sought-after models from independent makers, was inspired by his interest and expertise in science and technology.
The auction includes an F.P. Journe “Tourbillon Souverain Black Label” (estimated to sell for $250,000-$450,000), as well as the RM-6101 “Yohan Blake” watch by Richard Mille ($150,000 to $250,000), and the De Bethune Ref. DB28XP watch ($80,000-$120,000) pictured at top of the article.
Formed by the merger of Leslie Hindman Auctioneers and Cowan’s Auctions, Hindman Auctions has 15 locations nationwide, including a New York office that opened earlier this year.
Shortly after the office opened, the auction house hired Leslie Roskind as senior specialist for jewelry and watches for the Northeast region.
Roskind spent 17 years working for Christie’s jewelry department in both New York and Los Angeles. She also served as the director of acquisitions at Fred Leighton.
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