Audemars Piguet is one of the world's three biggest watch brands and one of the most prestigious Swiss manufactures. Its representative model, the Royal Oak, is particularly popular, and its price has risen dramatically in recent years.
This time, We would like to introduce the history, characteristics, and popular models of Audemars Piguet . If you are wondering, "Why is Audemars Piguet so popular?" or "I want to know more about the brand!", please refer to this article.
Features of Audemars Piguet
Audemars Piguet is a long-established watch brand founded in Switzerland. Since its founding, the company has established a solid position in the development of ultra-complicated watches, and the Royal Oak, which was released in 1972, sent shock waves through the watch industry as a new sports watch that went beyond the conventional wisdom of the time. Let's start by introducing the features of Audemars Piguet, which is at the forefront of the luxury watch world.
Status as one of the world's three major watch brands
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Audemars Piguet is known as one of the three biggest watch brands in the world, alongside Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin. One of the reasons for this is, without a doubt, its "long history." It has never gone out of business since its founding in 1875, and in the watch industry, it is very rare for a brand to continue operating without any interruption in its operations. Its long history is so amazing that it is worthy of being one of the world's three biggest watch brands.
Another characteristic of the company is its overwhelming "watchmaking technology." Since its founding, the company has aimed to make watches smaller and thinner, developing movements that overwhelmed the technological capabilities of other companies. At the Paris World's Fair in 1889 , the company solidified its position in the watch industry by unveiling the "Grand Complication Pocket Watch," which was equipped with a number of complicated mechanisms such as a perpetual calendar, minute repeater, and split-seconds. This watch attracted so much attention in the industry that it was called "the pinnacle of watchmaking."
Audemars Piguet has a history of uninterrupted operation and the technical skills it has steadily developed over that time. These two factors are what allow it to reign supreme in the watch industry.
The pioneer of luxury sports watches
*Source: https://italianwatchspotter.com/royal-oak-15202st-discontinued/?lang=en
In recent years, luxury sports watches have become very popular, but when the Royal Oak was introduced, it was considered a completely unorthodox watch. At the time, luxury watches were mainly small and made of gold or platinum, but the Royal Oak was made of stainless steel and had a large case, which was a departure from the usual design. For this reason, it was not an immediate hit when it was introduced, but it gradually gained acceptance and is now one of the brand's leading collections.
The History of Audemars Piguet
From here, let's take a look at the 140 -year history of Audemars Piguet. It can be broadly divided into three periods, so we will introduce them in order.
Audemars Piguet: It all started with two watchmakers
*Source: https://graciouswatch.com/the-history-of-audemars-piguet-watches/
The history of Audemars Piguet began in 1875 in the Vallée de Joux in Switzerland. The founders were Jules Louis Audemars, a genius watchmaker, and Edouard Auguste Piguet, a man skilled in sales and management. It all began when these two men set up an atelier to make watches. Initially, the company acted as a subcontractor for other manufacturers, and in 1882 it became independent under its current brand name, Audemars Piguet.
Pocket watches with complications
*Source: https://www.audemarspiguet.com/com/ja/about/savoir-faire/astronomy.html
When the company was founded, pocket watches incorporating complicated mechanisms were popular. Following this trend, Audemars Piguet produced many pocket watches equipped with complicated mechanisms. In 1921 , they developed a pocket watch with a case size of 21.1 mm and a thickness of just 1.32 mm , which became a hot topic as the world's smallest pocket watch. This success gave them further momentum, and in 1938 they developed an ultra-thin movement with a thickness of 1.64 mm . In the 1950s , they aimed to further miniaturize and thin complex mechanisms, and in 1957 they successfully developed a wristwatch equipped with a perpetual calendar, and in 1967 they developed a wristwatch equipped with the world's thinnest movement.
The Birth of the Royal Oak
*Source: https://www.audemarspiguet.com/com/ja/news/savoir-faire/ap-talks-royal-oak-genesis.html
Audemars Piguet, which demonstrated its high technical capabilities in the industry, created the Royal Oak in 1972. The 1970s was a time when many brands were struggling due to the quartz shock. Popularity shifted to inexpensive quartz watches, and dress watches, which had been the mainstay until then, stopped selling. The result was the sporty-designed Royal Oak.
At the time, mechanical watches were dominated by small, thin watches made of gold or platinum. The Royal Oak, however, was made of stainless steel and had a case size of 39mm , an unusual size and material for the time. It was a rather unorthodox model in the conservative watch industry, but it ended up becoming a hit that represented the brand and sparked the subsequent "big, thick watch boom."
Representative model
Finally, we would like to introduce some representative models.
Royal Oak
*Source: https://www.audemarspiguet.com/com/ja/watch-collection/royal-oak/15500ST.OO.1220ST.01.html
The Royal Oak was born in 1972 , designed by Gerald Genta, also known as the Picasso of the watch world. As mentioned above, it was unusual to use stainless steel for luxury watches, which were generally made of gold and platinum at the time. Furthermore, the case size of 39mm was unparalleled at the time, and it became popular due to its compatibility with the "jumbo" name.
The Royal Oak is characterized by its bracelet integrated with the case and octagonal bezel, and it is a design that has influenced so many people that there are now models with a similar shape on the market. Incidentally, the model name "Royal Oak" is derived from the name of the British Prince Consort-class ironclad ship, and the bezel design was inspired by a porthole.
Royal Oak Offshore
*Source: https://www.audemarspiguet.com/com/ja/watch-collection/royal-oak-offshore/26420RO.OO.A002CA.01.html
The Royal Oak Offshore is a more powerful and sporty version of the Royal Oak. It comes in a 42mm case size, which is even larger than the old Royal Oak, commonly known as the "Jumbo." It is currently available in two models: the Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph, which is equipped with a chronograph, and the Royal Oak Offshore Diver, which is a full-fledged diver's model.
Millenary
*Source: https://www.betteridge.com/audemars-piguet-millenary-4101-automatic-rose-gold-15350or.oo.d093cr.01/p/6922/
The Millenary, which was released in 2000 , was inspired by the Colosseum, a World Heritage site in Rome. It features an oval shape and is known for being designed by Japanese watchmaker Naohiro Hamaguchi. It is popular not only for its beautiful, artistic appearance, but also for the fact that the movement inside can be fully enjoyed through the skeleton dial.
Jules Audemars
*Source: https://www.gemnation.com/watches/Audemars-Piguet-Jules-Audemars-Selfwinding-15170OR.OO.A088CR.01-22937.html
The Jules Audemars collection was created in tribute to Jules Louis Audemars, the founder of Audemars Piguet. The watch has a wide range of designs, from simple designs to those equipped with complex mechanisms. Among them, the Jules Audemars Extra-Thin is a watch that crystallizes Audemars Piguet's thin movement development technology. The ultra-thin movement Cal.2120 is astonishingly thin, with a thickness of just 2.45mm and a case thickness of just 6.7mm . It is recommended for those looking for a simple dress watch.
CODE 11.59 by Audemars Piguet
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" CODE 11.59 by Audemars Piguet" was released in 2019 as the first new collection in 26 years. It is an unusual name even within the brand, with " CODE " being an acronym for " Challenge ," "Own ," " Dare ," and " Evolve ." The number " 11.59 " refers to 11:59 a.m., suggesting the start of a new day just before the date changes.
However, apart from the unique name, the point to pay attention to is the design. It is a new model that incorporates design codes from past masterpieces and embodies the brand philosophy of "harmony between tradition and confidence." Now, three years after its launch, it has become one of the three pillars of the brand, alongside the "Royal Oak" and "Royal Oak Offshore."
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What did you think.
Audemars Piguet is one of the world's three biggest watch brands, thanks to its long history and advanced watchmaking technology. The brand's iconic Royal Oak has a long history, and even now, half a century after its birth, it has evolved into a popular model known by all watch lovers, thanks to its beloved design. And there is no doubt that it will continue to be loved for the next half century.
Why not try out an Audemars Piguet model, which is packed with such overwhelming technical skill and unique design?