Description

The ‘Royal Oak’ overturned the prevailing codes in 1972 during a period of existential crisis for the watch industry due to the boom of the cheap Quartz watches made in Asia.

The company had to come with a bold, solid stainless sports steel luxury watch, they gave the mission to Gerald Genta to design it.
He got the inspiration from a deep-sea-diving helmet, the result was an octagonal bezel, visible mounting screws, a large case of 39mm with an integrated bracelet, a very futuristic design for the seventies.
Within 2-3 years they sold about 1000 watches establishing a new segment within the industry and pioneered the popularity and desirability of the steel sports luxury watch.

The first model released was the reference 5402 known today as the “Royal Oak A series”, with a thin automatic calibre 2121 movement that is still made today.

Since they treated steel as gold, the level of finishing was remarkable and so was the retail price, for comparison purpose a similar Rolex sport watch was 10x cheaper.

Today, Audemars Piguet still produces a range of Royal Oaks in different sizes (33 to 41mm) for ladies and men, from titanium, rose gold, yellow gold and platinum metals, various dial colours and with different complications.

One of various special edition Royal Oaks with striking dials, we present to you a rare 300-piece edition, only released in Japan upon launch. This particular model stands out for its unique salmon-colored dial, which adds a touch of elegance and sophistication to the already striking timepiece.

Encased in a 41mm lightweight titanium case is a gorgeous salmon-colored dial with the signature « Grand Tapisserie » pattern, with matching sub-dials. This timepiece’s main highlight is the perpetual calendar neatly laid out with the date at 3 o’clock, the moon phases indicator at 6, days of the week at 9 o’clock, months and leap year indicator at noon, with the weeks marked on a salmon inner bezel along the periphery of the dial.
The dial is further decorated with Royal Oak hands with luminescent coating and indexes applied in white gold.

Under the hood is the AP in-house calibre 5135 automatic movement, made up of 374 parts and decorated with 38 jewels, offering 40 hours of power reserve. The titanium case provides a lightweight and durable base for the watch, while sapphire crystal case back ensures excellent visibility of the intricate mechanics inside.

To sit on your wrist, this watch comes on a sophisticated integrated bracelet, also made of titanium and secured with the AP folding clasp.

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”.