Audemars Piguet Classic Ultra - Navy Diamond Dial
Ultra Slim
Watch Only
Wire Price: $3,500
Specifications
Year: Circa 1980s
Model: Ultra Slim
Case Diameter: 32mm
Lug to Lug: 35mm
Case: White Gold
Condition:
No significant wear as seen
Dial: Navy
Movement: Manual
Condition
The case on this AP looks to be unpolished because of the clean brushed finish. The matte navy dial has five factory diamonds and a light grey font color. The dial is very clean with just one sweep mark between 3 and 6 o'clock from the minute hand. The watch houses the caliber 2003, which is the ultra-slim, manual wound, movement found in many APs.
The Story
Audemars Piguet as a brand is one of the top players in the watch world and that's mainly thanks to the Royal Oak. That's not to say Audemars Piguet is only good at one thing. The brand has a vast history that includes much more than the Royal Oak. Before their popular sports dress watch, Audemars Piguet was at their top, making some of the most beautiful dress watches. Ultra slim manual movements, perpetual calander, and so much more. The brand is so much more than just their sports watches and a lot of people forget about that these days.
With that being said, here is a beautiful Dress watch, which is something everyone should have in their collection. Also known as a cocktail watch, a piece like this is meant to be small and thin, and solid gold for most examples. It doesn’t get much better than owning a clean example of an Audemars Piguet for under $5000.
The Brand
Audemars Piguet and Piguet were working separately in the 1870s, with Audemars creating complicated watch movements for different manufacturers. After starting to work together in 1875, they continued this split function, with Audemars overseeing production and technical aspects and Piguet focusing on sales and management. The name Audemars Piguet & Cie was first used in 1881.
In 1892, the brand created the first-minute repeater wristwatch, followed by the Grand Complication pocket watch in 1899. Tragically, Audemars and Piguet passed away in 1918 and 1919, but the company continued to grow. The next generation of Audemars and Piguet, sons Paul Louis Audemars and Paul Edward Piguet, continued the legacy.
During the early-mid 1900s, the brand continued to push for innovation within the watch community. The thinnest pocket watch caliber was released in 1925, while the first skeletonized pocket watch was released in 1934. In 1946, the world's thinnest wristwatch was launched, and the first perpetual calendar wristwatch was released in 1957. The brand also holds the record for the first thinnest self-winding automatic caliber featuring a central rotor of 2.45mm in 1967.
In the 1970s, the quartz crisis affected traditional mechanical watchmakers, leading Audemars Piguet to partner with Swiss watch designer Gerald Genta to develop a new category of watches. The Royal Oak steel watch, introduced at the 1972 Swiss Watch Show, was made of stainless steel and had an integrated bracelet. The daring design of the case, featuring a round dial within an octagon bezel with 8 screws set inside a tonneau-shaped case, has become one of the most iconic and highly sought-after pieces.
