Audemars Piguet Jules Audemars Tourbillon Chronograph watch

The Audemars Piguet Jules Audemars Tourbillon Chronograph watch is a masterpiece of haute horlogerie. This stunning example of the watchmakers art unites a traditional column wheel-controlled chronograph with the most celebrated complication in watchmaking--the tourbillon. Invented by Breguet at the turn of the 19th century as a means to combat the effects of gravity upon the vertically held escapements of pocketwatches, the tourbillon also came to quickly represent the pinnacle of the horological craft, due to its intricate construction and technical challenge. As such, through the centuries, it has remained a preserve of only the elite of watchmaking houses, the kind ideally represented by Audemars Piguet, for whom such complications have been a speciality from its very beginnings.

The Audemars Piguet Jules Audemars Tourbillon Chronograph watch is animated by an extraordinary manually wound movement, the 2889/2005 Caliber, which offers a power reserve of 72 hours. This movement represents the very best in haute de gamme watchmaking. Each of its 286 components is finished by hand; all steel parts are chamfered by hand, while bridges display Cotes de Geneve striping and polished (anglage) edges. Jewel and screws sit in polished, beveled settings, and each screw is polished numerous times, not only on the top side, but on the sides of the head as well. Wheels and pinions of the various gear trains are equally well finished not only for optimum longevity and function, but also for aesthetic beauty. The Audemars Piguet Jules Audemars Tourbillon Chronograph watch possesses a chronograph mechanism which is an utter delight to operate. Activating the start-stop-return to zero sequence reveals the remarkable finesse invested in the 2889/2005 Caliber, and each step is exactly coordinated with the advance of the column wheel, which can be admired with the rest through the exhibition sapphire caseback. The Audemars Piguet Jules Audemars Tourbillon Chronograph watch reveals the beauty of its tourbillon device through an aperture in the exquisitely detailed guilloche silver dial, which is accented by skeletonized gold hands and applied Roman numeral hour markers. Mounted on a curved bridge whose edges have been flawlessly beveled, the tourbillon displays its delicate architecture and fine screw-adjusted balance wheel, which beats at a pace of 21,600 vibrations per hour.

Audemars Piguet offers this highly complex timepiece in 18K white, yellow, or pink gold. This finely crafted classical round case displays a masterful contrast between brushed and polished surfaces, and its production demands extensive hand finishing; it measures a stately 43mm in diameter. The Audemars Piguet Jules Audemars Tourbillon Chronograph watch is completed by a luxurious crocodile strap and an 18K gold deployant clasp whose shape takes the form of the Audemars Piguet initials.