Audemars Piguet has introduced two new versions of its Code 11.59 Selfwinding in 38 mm, both built around dials cut from natural stone, according to SJX Watches. One pairs an 18k yellow gold case with a dial of gold obsidian, a dark volcanic glass flecked with shimmering mineral inclusions. The other sets a mirror-polished black onyx dial in 18k pink gold and marks the hours with baguette-cut diamonds.
The watches are available at AP Houses and boutiques, priced at US$57,500 for the yellow gold model and US$68,500 for the pink gold version with diamond indices, excluding taxes. Neither is a limited edition.
Why it matters
The launch extends a stone-dial programme that Audemars Piguet has been running across its collections, and it does so at the smaller, dressier end of the Code 11.59 range. SJX Watches notes that the brand has been at the forefront of the stone-dial trend, and that the pink gold onyx model follows the format of two 41 mm Code 11.59 watches released earlier with malachite and sodalite dials.
The new pieces also carry a significant price premium over the standard 38 mm Code 11.59 for what SJX Watches describes as essentially an aesthetic upgrade. The same report judges the pricing fair when set against other watches that use gold obsidian or baguette-set dials.
Two treatments, two characters
The two dials are intended to appeal in different ways. On the yellow gold watch, the gold obsidian supplies texture and glitter, and the gold-flecked theme carries beyond the dial: the flange and the black alligator strap are both dusted with gold-coloured specks. SJX Watches notes that Gérald Genta has recently used the same colourway.
The pink gold model takes a more formal route. Its onyx dial is uniformly black and mirror-finished, a surface the report compares to black enamel, which leaves the large baguette-cut diamond markers to carry the design. SJX Watches describes those markers as simple but appealing, and ties them to the growing popularity of gem-set dials.
Both watches keep the restrained dial layout of the Code 11.59, which the report says gives the stone room to stand out, and the compact 38 mm case suits the dressier character of these variants. The case measures 9.6 mm in height, uses sapphire crystal and is water resistant to 30 m.
A date-less movement
The new models drop the date display, a change made possible by the automatic cal. 5909, the date-less counterpart to the cal. 5900 found in the standard 38 mm Code 11.59 that SJX Watches reviewed in February. The movement is a compact, high-end unit produced by Vaucher to Audemars Piguet's specifications. It runs at 28,800 beats per hour (4 Hz), offers a 60-hour power reserve and shows hours, minutes and seconds. SJX Watches adds that the calibre could stand to be slightly larger given the case size, while crediting it with tidy industrial-haute horlogerie finishing.
Familiar ground
SJX Watches questions whether the stone-dial trend may be nearing its end, given how long it has run. The report adds that the latest 38 mm Code 11.59 variants feel as though they could have sat in the collection for years, particularly the pink gold onyx model.
Watch for how the pair is received at retail and whether Audemars Piguet continues to widen the stone-dial offer across other case sizes and collections.
