Pre-SIHH 2011. Audemars Pigeut has already released details of one of the watches it will be showing at the SIHH 2011. If this is a sign of things to come, this will be a very interesting show indeed. The new watch is the Millenary Hand Wound-Minute Repeater, which better know for their luxury sports Royal Oak and Royal Oak Offshore watches. But make no mistake, Audemars Piquet is a complication watchmaker of the first order.
What is a minute repeater? A repeater is a complication in a mechanical watch that audibly chimes the hours and minutes at the press of a button. This complication originated to allow the time to be determined in the dark, and were also used by the visually impaired. The minute repeater chimes the time down to the minute, using separate tones for hours, quarter hours, and minutes, usually with low tones for the hours, a sequence of two tones for the quarter hour and high tones for minutes.
What is a minute repeater? A repeater is a complication in a mechanical watch that audibly chimes the hours and minutes at the press of a button. This complication originated to allow the time to be determined in the dark, and were also used by the visually impaired. The minute repeater chimes the time down to the minute, using separate tones for hours, quarter hours, and minutes, usually with low tones for the hours, a sequence of two tones for the quarter hour and high tones for minutes.
Audemars Piguet Millenary Hand Wound-Minute Repeater. The Audemars Piguet Millenary Hand Wound-Minute Repeater is housed in a imposing 47mm diameter case. Consistent with Audemars Piguet designs which merge tradition with modern technology, the case is made of Titanium. The dial of the watch does not completely cover the movement, allowing you to see the escapement from the face of the watch. The movement is also visible from the rear of the watch through a sapphire crystal case back
The movement itself is a in house manufactured Audemars Piguet Calibre 2910 with an offset hours and minutes displayed at the 3 o’clock, offset minutes at 7 o’clock. A slide serving to activate the minute repeater is found at the right side of the watch. The movement beats at 21,600 vibrations per hour and has a mazing 165 hour power reserve, meaning that the watch will run for almost seven days on a full winding charge.
Befitting a luxury item all parts finishing is done by hand. The strap is a hand-sewn black crocodile leather fastened by a titanium AP folding clasp. All-in-all this watch is an amazing combination of old age watchmaking and modern technology befitting the highly respected name it carries.
About Audemars Piguet. Audemars Piguet began in 1875 when Jules Audemars and Edward-August Piguet met in the Valle de Jous looking for jobs in the local watchmaking industry. Audemars was the watchmaker in charge of production, and Piguet took charge of sales and marketing. The Audemars Piguet trademark was registered in 1882, and the firm was officially founded later in 1889. Today, Audemars Piguet is the oldest Manufacture still owned and operated by its founding families. Audemars Piguet limits production to less than 20,000 watches per year.
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