Description

After a dramatic few months of teasing, during the 2019 SIHH, Audemars Piguet dropped an entirely new family of watches called the Code 11.59. Five years of designing and development resulting into a revolutionary model, nothing like anything that AP had done before.

But as with every new development, there are mixed emotions. For a brand that is part of the ‘Holy Trinity’ of watchmaking, the expectations were very high. Or should we say, different. The contemporary design of the Code 11.59 was so new and fresh, it didn’t go down well with a part of the audience, and quite understandably so. It is difficult to accept something so bold and modern, from a brand that is so deeply rooted in history and tradition.

But one thing was certain. It was a window into AP’s future and how its clientele is evolving. In terms of the aesthetic, the 41mm case has a three-piece construction, with the center segment having the signature AP octagonal design, but in a very subtle way.
The lugs are detached from the case on the underside, while being soldered to the bezel, which holds the domed sapphire crystal, curved on two different radiuses.

At the time of the launch, this new collection featured three all-new calibers, with 13 new references across 6 contemporary models including a basic time and date and a chronograph (with lacquer dials), a flying tourbillon and a Supersonnerie (with enamel dials) and a perpetual calendar with an aventurine dial.

The collection is now evolving and the present reference 15210BC.OO.A002KB.01 with a smoked blue dial is a part of the five new sunburst lacquer dials launched in 2020.

We must admit the fume dial looks incredibly gorgeous, with the expanse of the beautiful blue with nothing but the Audemars Piguet logo under 12 o’clock, a date window between 4 o’clock and 5 o’clock and applied hour markers in white gold, contrasting stunningly against the dial. The inner bezel is in black lacquer and displays the minutes markers.

The 41mm case also gets an uplift featuring a striking new version in white gold, with a pink gold case band. It is 10.7mm thick, featuring the double-domed sapphire over the dial, a sapphire case back and offers 30m water resistance. On the inside is the AP in-house automatic Caliber 4302 with the instantaneous jumping date function. This is a robust caliber that leaves a lot of space for additional modules. It features a AP semi-skeleton rose gold rotor, a freesprung balance and offers an impressive 70-hr power reserve. The finishing is meticulous with Geneva stripes on the beveled-edge bridges and perlage on the baseplate.

This attractive timepiece is offered on a matching black rubber-coated strap.

Audemars Piguet – bio

Audemars Piguet is a Swiss manufacturer of mechanical watches founded in 1875. They began in the Vallée de Joux. Jules Louis Audemars formed a partnership with Edward Auguste Piguet. Audemars created complicated blank watch movements for other manufactures to use. Piguet specialized in the final regulation of watches. They then split responsibilities when they began their own company. Audemars was in charge of production and technical aspects while Piguet focused on sales and management. One of their first achievements was creating the first repeater wristwatch in 1892 and in 1972 the iconic steel “Royal Oak”.