The Royal Oak Offshore is a key collection of Audemars Piguet, one of the world's three major watch brands, and is a representative example of luxury watches with massive proportions. We will introduce the appeal of the Royal Oak Offshore, a masculine luxury watch that you cannot miss, and the current main models.
Audemars Piguet Overview and Main Collections
With a great history that has led the watch industry, among its many collections, the Royal Oak and Royal Oak Offshore in particular have had an impact that has completely changed the values associated with luxury watches.
Here we will take a look at an overview of Audemars Piguet and its main collections.
One of the world's three major watch brands
Audemars Piguet was founded in Le Brassus in the Vallée de Joux in the canton of Vaud in southwestern Switzerland in 1875. Since then, it has remained family-run by the founding families of Audemars and Piguet, and is considered one of the leading Swiss watch manufacturers.
From the beginning, the company specialized in complex mechanisms such as chronographs, minute repeaters, and perpetual calendars, and after World War I it also gained fame for its thin watches.
In 1892, they released the world's first wristwatch equipped with a minute repeater, and in 1921 they released the world's smallest repeater pocket watch.
In 1955, the company released the world's first wristwatch equipped with a perpetual calendar and leap year display, and in 1986, it released the world's first wristwatch equipped with an automatic tourbillon, with a case thickness of just 5.3 mm. The company has achieved many great feats that have led the watch industry.
Main Collections
Before the concept of "models" was introduced to watches in 1951, all Audemars Piguet watches were one-of-a-kind pieces.
Audemars Piguet had been producing luxury watches, especially thin complications, in small quantities, but a change came about in 1972 with the introduction of the Royal Oak.
At the time, luxury watches were generally considered to have gold cases with a case diameter of around 33 mm, so the Royal Oak, with its 39 mm stainless steel case, was an extraordinary challenge.
The Royal Oak, which completely changed the concept of luxury watches, and the subsequent Royal Oak Offshore, which was born in 1993 with its massive proportions, are now Audemars Piguet's signature collections.
Royal Oak and Offshore
The Royal Oak is a masterpiece that brought new value to the traditional luxury watch with its round case and leather strap.
Based on this, Audemars Piguet developed its own unique personality into the Royal Oak Offshore. Here, we will look at the characteristics of the Royal Oak and the Royal Oak Offshore.
What is the Royal Oak?
The Royal Oak, affectionately known as the "Jumbo," was released in 1972 as a luxury stainless steel sports watch.
The watch was designed by the genius designer Gerald Genta, and the bezel is based on the window in a diving helmet.
Although it is a thin model, it is water resistant to 50m, and the three-dimensional effect of the dial is highlighted by the "tapestry" pattern created by two layers of guilloche engraving.
Other distinctive design codes include the octagonal bezel with hexagonal screws that extend all the way to the case back, and the bracelet that is completely integrated with the case.
オフショアとは
The Royal Oak Offshore, released in 1993, was a luxury watch with a large case diameter of 42mm, larger than the Royal Oak.
Nicknamed the Beast because of its sheer size, this watch even confounded Gerald Genta, and was designed by Emmanuel Guillet, an in-house designer at Audemars Piguet.
Equipped with a chronograph and tachymeter, and featuring a heavily decorated "Mega Tapisserie" dial, it has an even more masculine design than the Royal Oak.
Furthermore, a black gasket is sandwiched into the bezel, making it water resistant to 100m, and the crown is fitted with a silicone cap.
It is now positioned as an experimental collection of new materials and original designs, with a wide variety of functions and faces.
