Audemars Piguet

A watch manufacture that is inevitably associated with classic beauty and captivating grace. A world company of haute horlogerie, the only one to have been in family hands for over 140 years and to have mastered all the economic crises that shook its time. It crossed the pond early on and established representative offices in the most important cities of the era, such as New York, Buenos Aires, Berlin, Paris and London. Audemars Piguet experienced its greatest boom after the Second World War - not least due to the lively US demand for wristwatch chronographs. Then as now, Audemars Piguet's luxury watches are a symbol of highly aesthetic and at the same time technically perfected watchmaking.

Two friends - one brand

They began their careers as watch repairers in the last quarter of the 19th century. Watchmaking specialists, who in their time held this historic apprenticeship, were the last to hold the finished watch in their hands before it left the manufactory. They were responsible for the final polish, the final inspection. 1875 was their year: Jules-Louis Audemars and his friend Edward-Auguste Piguet seized the favor of the founding era and developed their first own watches. From 1881, the joint venture Audemars Piguet & Cie. was already producing complicated pocket watches with a perpetual calendar, minute repeater or chronograph function, and in 1889 they won a medal at the Paris World's Fair with "La Grande Complication". Only 100 examples of this precious watch, which was already considered a luxury at the time, were sold all over the world. In 1891, the world's smallest movement and, in 1892, the first wristwatch with minute repeater astonished the public and experts alike.

From the twenties, the second generation of the company took the helm and focused on the production of the highest quality wristwatches, fashionable watches that shone with precious metals and precious stones. The Swiss company's developments also graced the elegant displays of posh jewelers Tiffany (New York) and Van Cleff & Arpels (Paris). Today's Jules Audemars Edition picks up on quotes from this period and captivatingly varies feminine desire for beauty with masculine expressiveness. Far more than luxury watches, these models are pieces of jewelry that express themselves in a stupendous harmony of material, color and form. From the beginning, courage to be avant-garde and the creativity for extravagance. The Millenary Collection picks up classicist aesthetic elements. Unique in shape, influenced by the architecture of the Roman Collosseum, striking in the intricately crafted dials, where Arabic numerals and Roman appliqués on two asynchronous discs indicate hours and minutes. In the "Lady Precieuse" version, countless diamonds sparkle on the bezel and bracelet.

With networks that have grown over many years, HORANDO is also able to track down rarer desired objects of the Audemars Piguet brand and make them available for watch purchase both on the Internet and in its own showroom. Of course, this also applies to the models of the Audemars Piguet luxury watch Royal Oak. Lovers of luxury watches often spare no way to convince themselves directly and immediately of the advantages of this wonderful luxury watch in the stationary store at the Bamberg location.

"Royal Oak" - legend, masterpiece, beauty? All in one!

We don't know why the director of Audemars Piguet was in such a hurry when, on the afternoon of a September day in 1970, he contacted the renowned Geneva watch designer Gérald Genta to place an exceptionally short-term order. The very next morning, the first draft of a waterproof steel sports watch was reportedly on hand. The Royal Oak prototype stunned with its avant-garde square shape, porthole appearance, and visible robust screws connecting the bezel to the case. The resemblance to historical diving helmets immediately caught the eye. With its appearance on the market in 1972, the model with the ultra-thin case made its mark on the modern watch manufacture. In 2012, Audemars Piguet reissued the style icon of modern watchmaking in eight models. Every detail quotes the early Royal Oak, which borrowed its name from special battleships of the British Royal Navy. The battleship became the flagship. Like the historic Royal Oak, the modern one reveals itself via the "Petite Tapisserie" decor. It is created in Audemars Piguet's own workshops on traditional machines and produces its unique effect in the superimposition of two different decorations and the special blue coloring on the dial and date disc (e.g. reference 15202ST.OO.1240ST.01). A watch diameter of 39 mm was considered oversized 40 years ago. Today, it meets the contemporary taste very accurately. Its profile in detail: case center, bezel, bracelet and folding clasp in stainless steel. 8 hexagonal screws in white gold. The same movement as 1972, caliber 2121 with mechanical winding. Power reserve of 40 hours. In its entirety 247 components. Oscillating weight in 22 carat gold.

A class of its own - Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore

Limited to 50 pieces, the Royal Oak Offshore Tourbillon Chronograph edition uses innovative materials such as forged carbon, ceramic (for the bezel), titanium-ceramic combination (for the pusher), rubber straps. A total of 335 individual parts compose a masterful example of high watchmaking skill. The movement of the Royal Oak Offshore can be observed at work through the anti-reflective sapphire crystal caseback.

The watch of the virile grandees

It is not surprising that a sports watch that shines with beauty in addition to functionality is also coveted by the greats of competitive sports. The company itself shows its great affinity with sports in its commitment to the Swiss sailing team Alinghi, which is spoiled for success. Like other peer luxury watches, Audemars Piguet's limited edition models in particular have become coveted collector's items and favorites among celebrity aficionados. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Formula One star Pablo Montoya and racing legend Michael Schumacher all wear Audemars Piguet. In 2012, the watch empire dedicated a limited edition of three models in titanium, rose gold and platinum to Michael Schumacher: seven stars to the right of the 12 o'clock display pay tribute to his seven world championship titles. You don't have to be a sports celebrity to associate yourself with an Audemars Piguet. But anyone who feels this aesthetically and technically ravishing watch brand on their wrist can feel privileged. HORANDO attaches great importance to ensuring that high-performance luxury watches such as Audemars Piguet models, whose collector's items are highly traded, find their enthusiasts at fair prices when buying watches online or in brick-and-mortar retail stores.