There have been less than a dozen boxes for sale in the past several years with many more collectors than that with incomplete sets. When one comes on the market, bidding can easily exceed $30k not because the box itself is worth it, but because having a complete set is. The money put into the cork box is easily recouped in the overall value of the 3711/3712 when it is a complete set.
Yes, it is easy to discount the validity and worth of the boxes by simply writing them off as a β$20k cork boxβ but one must understand the upper echelon of collecting to be able to rationalize such a purchase. It is difficult to rationalize, in any form, the hodinkee travel clock.