Inside FutureGrail’s new watch museum in Singapore: how the private museum in an unassuming warehouse is widening the scope of timepiece collecting beyond Patek Philippe, Rolex and Omega
- FutureGrail’s warehouse exhibition space features more than 200 ultra-rare and vintage timepieces, including the J.W. Benson Navigator’s Watch
- Prominent timepiece collector and investor Ali Nael and business partner Mohsin Rizvi run the show, with Patek Philippe Museum’s former head Arnaud Tellier as chief curator
But that is exactly where a new watch museum, an initiative by watch investment advisory firm FutureGrail, is located. It houses over 200 ultra-rare timepieces unrestored and polished to perfection, and is open to the public by appointment.
Highlights include the Navigator’s Watch by J.W. Benson from the 1900s, which is one of the most complex watches made in the history of horology, with complications like 24-hour World Time for 63 cities as well as a planisphere.
Then there is a unique 18-carat gold enamel and pearl amphora-shaped perfume bottle from 1805. Attributed to Piguet & Capt, it has a key-winding concealed watch and was sent to China’s imperial court. Its “twin brother” is kept in the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva.
FutureGrail was launched by prominent watch collector and investor Ali Nael and his business partner Mohsin Rizvi. The warehouse space also houses the firm’s tax-free storage facility, which is why it is situated in this industrial location.
Their aim is to augment Singapore’s horology community by introducing vintage watch collecting to a wider range of enthusiasts.
“Singapore is in the unique position of being a hub for Southeast Asia and collectors here are knowledgeable about independent watchmaking. Next, an increasing number of collectors are deep diving into vintage and pocket watches. This is usually the last thing people collect as it requires a lot of knowledge and we are on a mission to share this knowledge so that collectors can make informed decisions,” Nael says.
The company recently brought on board horology historian Arnaud Tellier as its head of curation. Tellier was head of the Patek Philippe Museum – widely considered one of the world’s foremost horology museums – for 11 years.
“The collection already includes a lot of what we can call treasures in the history of horology that are in perfect condition or are restored and conserved,” Tellier says, adding that Nael’s desire to develop the collection was what drew him to this project. “There are already several ‘flagship’ pieces that make this collection of a high international standard.”