Famed for their Royal Oak, Audemars Piguet is a brand that has permeated most of the watch industry in one way or another. Established as one of the "Holy Trinity" brands, Audemars Piguet is known to create some of the most exquisite examples of Haute Horlogerie in the market today. While the Royal Oak and its associated Offshore and Concept models are often vehicles to display their high-end mechanics, there exists another model that has also had that pleasure, the Edward Piguet.
Named after one of AP's two founding fathers, the Edward Piguet embodies AP's traditional values, free of the sports watch hype and fervent lust for stainless steel timepieces. A classic watch with elegance and beauty at its very core, the Edward Piguet collection has always remained true to the art of high-end watchmaking throughout its history.
Offered here, I have a limited edition Edward Piguet ref. 25853OR "Quantième Perpétuel" from the early 1990s. Limited to just 50 pieces, this is one of the rarest and most visually unique timepieces AP has ever made. Featuring a 27x45mm rectangular case made of 18kt pink gold, this Edward Piguet has an immediately distinctive design, especially for an AP. Featuring a stunning black dial with pink gold Breguet numerals and subsidiary dials, this ref. 25853OR carries a wonderfully consistent aesthetic throughout its design.
A perpetual calendar, the ref. 25853OR is powered by the incredible calibre 2141 movement, as displayed behind the exhibition caseback at the timepiece's rear. The true flourish to demonstrate just how special this watch is, the movement features incredibly detailed hand-engraved decorations to continue the ref. 25853OR's incredible visual display beyond just its dial and construction.
An incredibly important complication for AP, perpetual calendars occupy the number one spot as the most sought-after AP watches on the market. With the complication's importance to AP well established, collectors seek it out in an attempt to own a piece of watchmaking history. Having pioneered the first true perpetual calendar with a leap year indicator, today's collectors view AP as the complication's creator and thus holds AP's perpetual calendar models to very high esteem.
With the rapid growth in demand for AP's perpetual calendars, this Edward Piguet ref. 25853OR's position as a limited edition example of a finely produced watch with unique dimensions and a wonderfully decorated movement renders it an extremely rare and fleeting opportunity to add what is viewed as a distillation of AP's horological prowess to one's own collection.
