The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak has reached the five-decade mark. One of the most iconic watches made to this date, the Royal Oak’s story has been re-told many times. It’s no wonder its origin sometimes gets a little fuzzy.
In celebration of its 50th anniversary, Audemars Piguet has released anew edition of the Royal Oak. Take a journey through this timepiece’s story and learn how you could own a piece of the fascinating history.
The history of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak
The creation
Designed by the 20th century’s great watch designer Gerald Genta, the original AP Royal Oak was released on April 15th, 1972. And it was the first of its kind, bringing to the market the world’s first luxury steel sports watch. This unexpected merge signalled the beginning of a new era in fine watchmaking - one that could keep up with changing lifestyles.
The rumours
It’s natural for a watch with this much history to have its story re-told and re-jigged through time. And as the rumour goes, when the Royal Oak was first released, it was a flop.
The 1970s were turbulent for the Swiss watch industry, and it’s been said that Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak wasn’t immune to the struggles. According to some, the advent of affordable quartz from Japan - the “Quartz Crisis” - was partly to blame for the timepiece initially being something of a flop.
However, Audemars Piguet’s own archive team has recently shed light on these rumours, re-writing the story and making it true again.The team found documents that helped them build the real picture of Royal Oak’s early years. In response to false claims that it took four years to sell the first 1000 pieces, the documents uncovered that the first 2000 pieces were actually sold by 1975. Many of these are apparently still unaccounted for, meaning there are people out there that could be sitting on an exclusive piece worth a pretty penny.
In a time that was a crisis for most Swiss watchmakers (2000 companies went under during the Quartz Crisis), Audemars Piguet thrived. The Royal Oak, in fact, caused a boom for the company. Reports found that production increased from 9500 to 11,000 pieces a year between 1974 and 1984. Later, the watch would turn AP into one of the world’s most successful watch companies.
In a league of its own
Audemars Piguet, a brand founded in the heart of Switzerland in 1875, forms part of the Holy Trinity of Watchmaking. It brings some of the most complicated watches to the industry, and was classed as being amongst the highest tiers of watchmaking by the early 1970s.
As the story goes, the managing director of AP, Georges Golay, asked a watch designer to conceptualise an “unprecedented steel watch” on the last day of 1971. The following morning, the Royal Oak was born.
The name “Royal Oak” got its inspiration from historical warships. Its features, too, followed the nautical theme, with an octagonal bezel and exposed screws supposed to mirror a diver’s helmet.
The watch was crafted from steel - this was unheard of in a high-end watch back then. Steel, in fact, was more difficult to craft than gold, making the manufacture of the Royal Oak one that called for highly skilled watchmakers. The price of the Royal Oak was $3000, which in 1972 was huge. To give you an idea, this was 10 times more expensive than the Rolex Submariner of the same era.
The watch was crafted from steel - this was unheard of in a high-end watch back then. Steel, in fact, was more difficult to craft than gold, making the manufacture of the Royal Oak one that called for highly skilled watchmakers. The price of the Royal Oak was $3000, which in 1972 was huge. To give you an idea, this was 10 times more expensive than the Rolex Submariner of the same era.
Want to buy the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 50th Anniversary Edition?
TheAP Royal Oak 50th Anniversary Editionbuilds on the watch’s rich history. It’s Audemars Piguet's flagship product, and the latest model honours that in the most incredible way.
What’s different about this one?
To mark its 2022 release, the AP Royal Oak has undergone some updates. This rare piece has evolved to host new innovations, such as the manufacturer’s first-ever self-winding flying tourbillon, which is housed in a 39mm extra-thin “Jumbo” case.
We’re seeing refined aesthetics, new dial shades and a dedicated oscillating weight to mark the anniversary. The case and dial play with light in a unique way, and while we’ll be given options in terms of multiple metal and dial colours, the watch will continue to pay tribute to the original Royal Oak.
In September, we can also look forward to a 37mm version made for slender wrists.
We’ve sourced the Royal Oak 50th Anniversary Edition for you
Your secret weapon in the world of luxury timepieces, Trilogy Jewellers has sourced an exclusive Royal Oak 50th Anniversary Edition in excellent condition, which you can.
For any enquiries, call Trilogy on 0203 9298227 or visit our store in Hatton Garden.
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