Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Tourbillon Chronograph watch

The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Tourbillon Chronograph watch is an exquisite example of haute de gamme watchmaking. Audemars Piguet has taken the celebrated form of the Royal Oak watch and enriched it with the most celebrated complication in all of watchmaking. The tourbillon, invented at the turn of the 19th century, represented an ingenious triumph over the negative effects of gravity upon the escapement of pocket watches. At the same time, virtually overnight, the tourbillon came to represent a pinnacle of horlogical technique that only an accomplished handful of watchmakers were capable of realizing. Of course, the house of Audemars Piguet, in its rich 125-year plus history, has made elite complications such as the tourbillon an integral part of their repertoire, producing some of the most beautiful ever made.

The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Tourbillon Chronograph watch is animated by a manually wound movement whose balance wheel beats at a pace of 21,600 vibrations per hour. The tourbillon completes a single rotation each hour, as its cage bears the balance wheel, and the components of the escapement. The chronograph mechanism, enriched with a 30-minutes counter, is fully integrated into the movement architecture (as opposed to being modular) and is controlled by the traditional means of a column wheel; this method is de rigeur on the finest chronograph watches, and ensures that the action of the chronograph mechanism is of the utmost smoothness and precision. Each component inside the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Tourbillon Chronograph watch has been painstakingly refined by hand. The plates and bridges of the movement are decorated with hand-applied perlage and Cotes de Geneve patterns, and the steel levers of the chronograph and the edges of the bridges display chamfered edges. The settings for jewels and screws are fully beveled and polished, as are the screws, which are each individually polished, both on their top and sides. The steel tourbillon bridge, visible from the dial side, is painstakingly chamfered so that no sharp edge remains, and a fine polish applied.

Audemars Piguet is offering this exceptional Royal Oak watch in a range of variations in 18K gold (yellow, pink, or white), platinum, or stainless steel. The case and bracelet of this timepiece shares a heritage with all Audemars Piguet Royal Oak watch models. The surface of the watch displays many dozens of hand-finished facets, and an immensely rich contrast between satin brushed and polished surfaces. The characteristic porthole bezel with its eight sides frames an intricate dial that shows off a "Grande Tapisserie" pattern; around the bezel are the characteristic white gold hexagonal screws, whose slots align to form a circle.

Due to the complexity inherent in its creation, only a very small number of Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Tourbillon Chronograph watches are produced each year. Those who desire a watch which is also a masterpiece of the jewelers art, will appreciate that this timepiece is available upon request with a pave-set diamond dial, and a diamond-set bezel.