Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 5402ST 'D series' SKU : 7300
Model : Royal Oak 'Jumbo'
Reference : 5402ST
Case Dimensions : 39 mm
Case Material : Stainless steel case, original Audemars Piguet
Glass : Sapphire crystal
Movement : Automatic
Caliber : cal. 2121
Year : ca. 1982
The very first Royal Oak reference there is.
Back during the 'Quartz Crisis', luxury brands were suffering in sales due to the shift of watches being powered by super cheap Quartz-movements. This caused a big decline in sales for brands such as Audemars Piguet. What did they do to solve this issue? They called our friend: Gérald Genta. An absolute legend in watch designs and responsible for many designs, such as the one we have right here, which have ended up being iconic watches in the history of watchmaking.
Now what did he do exactly? He designed a large, mechanical, steel sports watch with a futuristic 'octagonal' design that was outrageously expensive for its time. It was the introduction of the, now famous, Royal Oak. The 5402 is the first reference to bear the legendary name and is the very first 'Jumbo' of its kind. The introduction of this piece created a disruptive change and established the desirability for a new type of mechanical watches. We are always glad to add pieces to our collection that have such a rich history.
The Royal Oak we're offering you today dates back to ca. 1982 as it is a D-series. Therefore the AP logo is set at the 12-hour mark. The original grey dial is absolutely stunningly faded and even shows some slight tropical spots on the tappiserie. The case, bezel and bracelet are still in a very nice condition with sharp edges on the lugs, case and bracelet. The watch has the original case size of 39 mm and runs on the famous calibre 2121, which was based on Jaeger-LeCoultre’s ultrathin calibre 920.
This timepiece is in an all-original condition, with the tritium lume in both the dial and hands in tact and untouched. Due to the new Audemars Piguet, 'Classic Parts Program', they tend to change all these things which is something we at, Amsterdam Vintage Watches, don't appreciate. As you all must know by now, we value originality and condition over any other factor.
