IN A BILLBOARD YEAR FOR AUDEMARS PIGUET, ONE GEOLOGICAL DELIGHT STANDS OUT
The big news for Audemars Piguet this year is the 50th anniversary of the Royal Oak, the marque’s lodestar timepiece and one of the most iconic watches in horological history. There are special celebratory editions of the watch, such as the steel Jumbo, which has proven wildly popular. And there is Royal Oak: From Iconoclast to Icon, a new book by the British journalist Bill Prince, telling the Royal Oak story in fascinating, granular detail.
Even Esquire was involved, producing an issue of the Little Watch Book, a pared-down version of its big brother, dedicated solely to the legend of the Royal Oak. In it, AP’s head of complications Michael Friedman wrote, “The 50-year journey of the Royal Oak is among the most dynamic stories of 20th-century design.” It had, he said, “created a new category within watchmaking, and transformed and expanded our perception of the luxury field”.
But Audemars Piguet is not defined by the Royal Oak alone. Far from it. As the latest Code 11.59 model attests, AP is still a source of watch design that pushes boundaries and breaks with tradition. Launched in January 2019, Code 11.59 was a new family of watches from the Swiss manufacturer, offering something unseen from the brand before — domed crystal, openwork lugs and multifaceted cases offering both curved and cornered edges. And they were gender-neutral; proudly marketed
