Audemars Piguet

The house

About Audemars Piguet

Audemars Piguet was founded in 1875 by Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet in Le Brassus, in the Vallée de Joux — and remains in the hands of its founding families, one of the few Swiss houses that can still say so.

In 1972 it released the Royal Oak. Designed by Gérald Genta and cased in stainless steel yet priced above the gold watches of its day, it was a genuine risk: an octagonal bezel secured by eight exposed hexagonal screws, a “Tapisserie” dial, and a bracelet integrated into the case rather than attached to it. It created the luxury sports watch category, and its silhouette is now among the most recognisable in watchmaking.

Today the Royal Oak and its derivatives are among the most sought-after references in the secondary market, where availability — not price alone — is usually the constraint.

The house that made steel precious.