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Throughout the years, Audemars Piguet watchmakers and artisans have surpassed technical and theoretical boundaries to craft ever more demanding mechanisms and ground-breaking designs.
Inspired by the larger cultural world, the evolution of Audemars Piguet timepieces reflect their respective eras while at times anticipating future design needs.
1917
The First Octagon
1929
Angular Geometries
1929
Tutti Frutti Art Deco lady’s watch
1936
Three-tone extra-thin pocket watch
1936
Creative Dial
1945
Contemporary Sobriety
1961
Juxtaposed Geometries
1962
Asymmetrical watch
1970
Haute Couture bracelet watch
1972
First Royal Oak designed by Gérald Genta
1993
First Royal Oak Offshore – a more muscular take on the Royal Oak
2002
Birth of the “futuristic” Royal Oak Concept
2015
Diamond Punk
2019
The Contemporary Evolution of a Classic
2023
[Re]Master02, a tribute to butalism
A new shape, a play on perspective and dimensions, the perfect harmony of lines and curves that designers sketch out, as they take the first step in a long journey to turn pioneering concept into horological reality.
Hand design
These initial drawings evolve to include technical details to determine exact proportions and dimensions. Designers work hand in hand with the technical and development teams throughout the design process to factor in the technical limitations that may lie ahead and prepare the piece for the movement it will house.
Computer design
On the basis of these primary sketches, designers move from paper to screen to draw up a three-dimensional model. The colours, materials, reflections and relief effects become increasingly realistic as designers work to scale on this virtual piece in order to hone each detail.
Prototyping
To complete the design process, a wax prototype is created before the technical teams can prepare the specifications for the manufacturing stage. A final prototype honed from precious materials is then crafted to perfect every detail. Only then can production of a timepiece begin.
Audemars Piguet has tirelessly explored new creative territories in terms of watchmaking techniques, complications, materials and breakthrough designs. Combining innovation with cutting-edge watchmaking technology, our timepieces play with the limits of material feasibility.
Haute Horlogerie demands patience and time, being rooted in ancestral techniques and meticulous gestures, most of which are still carried out by hand. Decoding the hundreds of hours it takes to create an Audemars Piguet watch.
Design evolution of the Royal Oak
Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet: A new ergonomic case
Unique gold logo in galvanic growth
Royal Oak 50th anniversary oscillating weight
Bleu Nuit, Nuage 50
Guillochage
The Smoked Dial
Hands
Dial
Ceramic crown
Steel case
Since 1875, Audemars Piguet has produced complex and refined watches, equally beautiful inside and out, finished and assembled by hand. Decoration techniques add the final touch, turning timepieces into true works of art.
Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet
Classic by nature, unconventional by design.
View CollectionRoyal Oak
From avant-garde to icon.
View CollectionRoyal Oak Offshore
A daring and sportier take on the Royal Oak.
View CollectionRoyal Oak Concept
A high-tech approach to Haute Horlogerie.
View Collection[RE]Master
Inspired by the past, redesigned for the present, [RE]Master symbolises both the tradition and the pioneering spirit that pervades every Audemars Piguet watch.
View CollectionThe First Royal Oak Cases
The Royal Oak case is an aesthetic and technical masterpiece combining a rounded octagon, a circle and a tonneau shape, extreme thinness and water-resistance. This article looks at the interior and exterior architecture of the watch.
Read on AP ChroniclesThe Royal Oak opens up to Other Materials
This article looks at the introduction of gold into the Royal Oak collection. During the first five years of the model's history, white gold was used only once, for the Shah of Iran.
Read on AP ChroniclesIt Takes Time to Create the Extraordinary
Haute Horlogerie demands patience and time, being rooted in ancestral techniques and meticulous gestures, most of which are still carried out by hand. Decoding the hundreds of hours it takes to create an Audemars Piguet watch.
Read moreNew technical and aesthetic horizons for the Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet
The Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet collection sees a radical evolution this year with the introduction of a new case size for the smaller wrists, its first models in stainless steel and a new signature dial design.
Read more[RE]Master02, a contemporary reinterpretation
Over the years, the Manufacture has used a wide variety of materials, colours and case forms, ranging from traditional geometries such as the circle, square and rectangle, to more unexpected trapezoidal or octagonal shapes.
Read more