Audemars Piguet celebrates the 40th anniversary of the women’s Royal Oak with a new jewellery technique, frosted gold. It’s also a story of three designers: Gérald Genta, who created the first Royal Oak in 1972, Jacqueline Dimier, the designer who redesigned Genta’s watch in a version for women, and Carolina Bucci, contemporary jewellery designer from Florence, whose frosted gold technique appears on these new watches.
Frosted gold, diamond-like sparkle
The new watches are very distinctive, with a shimmering sparkle from the frosted areas that contrast with facets of polished gold. Frosted gold has a long history, and is known as the Florentine technique, now adopted by fourth-generation jeweller Carolina Bucci in her native Florence.
The frosted gold technique is performed by repeatedly hammering the gold surface with a diamond-tipped tool. Today, the hammer is automatic, but even so it’s a technique that requires great skill, particularly on the complex surfaces of a watch and bracelet. The result is surprising. The way that the surface catches the light looks like gold with a pavé of tiny diamonds.
Audemars Piguet automatic 3120 movement in the larger version
The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Frosted Gold watches are made in two sizes, 33 mm and 37 mm, and in pink or white gold. The 33 mm versions have quartz movements, and the 37 mm versions are powered by the Audemars Piguet automatic 3120 movement, visible through the sapphire caseback. The Calibre 3120 has 280 components and 40 jewels, and runs at 3 Hertz, 21,600 vibrations per hour, with a power reserve of 60 hours. Bridges are finished with Côtes de Genève, and the gold oscillating weight is decorated with the Audemars and Piguet family crests, with stars, birds, castle (Audemars, on the left) and a horse holding a sword (Piguet, on the right). The movement has the stop-seconds function. Its robust construction, accuracy and reliability make it a fine in-house calibre.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Frosted Gold 37 mm pink gold
Case in pink gold, water-resistant to 50 m. Silver-toned dial with “Grande Tapisserie” pattern, pink gold applied hour-markers and Royal Oak hands with luminescent coating. Automatic Calibre 3120, hours, minutes, centre seconds, date. The bracelet has the AP folding clasp. Reference 15454OR.GG.1259OR.01, price €51,500 inclusive of VAT.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Frosted Gold 37 mm white gold
Case in white gold, water-resistant to 50 m. Rhodium-toned dial with “Grande Tapisserie” pattern, white gold applied hour-markers and Royal Oak hands with luminescent coating. Automatic Calibre 3120, hours, minutes, centre seconds, date. The bracelet has the AP folding clasp. Reference 15454BC.GG.1259BC.01, price €57,000 inclusive of VAT.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Frosted Gold 33 mm pink gold
Case in pink gold, water-resistant to 50 m. Silver-toned dial with “Grande Tapisserie” pattern, pink gold applied hour-markers and Royal Oak hands with luminescent coating. Quartz movement, hour, minutes and date, no seconds hand (so at a glance, someone admiring your watch won’t be able to see that it’s got a quartz movement). The bracelet has the AP folding clasp. Reference 67653OR.GG.1263OR.01, price €41,606 inclusive of VAT.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Frosted Gold 33 mm white gold
Case in white gold, water-resistant to 50 m. Rhodium-toned dial with “Grande Tapisserie” pattern, white gold applied hour-markers and Royal Oak hands with luminescent coating. Quartz movement, hour, minutes and date, no seconds hand. The bracelet has the AP folding clasp. Reference 67653BC.GG.1263BC.01, price €47,100 inclusive of VAT.
