- Manufacturer: Audemars Piguet
  Year: 1999
  Reference No: 25730OR
  Movement No: 463'537
  Case No: E11350.075
  Model Name: Royal Oak Dual Time
  Material: 18K pink gold and mother-of-pearl
  Calibre: Automatic, cal 2229/2845, 54 jewels
  Bracelet/Strap: 18K pink gold Audemars Piguet bracelet, max length 170mm
  Clasp/Buckle: 18K pink gold Audemars Piguet deployant clasp
  Dimensions: 36mm Diameter
  Signed: Case, dial, movement and bracelet signed
  Accessories: Accompanied by Audemars Piguet Certificate of Origin and presentation box. Further accompanied by Audemars Piguet and Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo co-signed Royal Oak 50th Anniversary Attestation.
- Catalogue Essay
  Mother-of-pearl has been appreciated and employed in jewellery since antiquity. Its iridescence and smooth texture has also been used in watchmaking, but its adoption has been surprisingly slow. While case details in mother-of-pearl are known from decorative pocket watches and automatons since the 19th century, the precious material started to make its way on lady’s wrist timepieces only around the mid-twentieth century. The first forays of mother-of-pearl in the realm of gentleman’s wristwatches can be traced to the 1970s - an era of particular experimentation in watch design - and one has to wait until the 1990s for a relatively widespread adoption of the material on sports watches. Multiple reasons can be accounted for such a situation: technically, mother-of-pearl is extremely difficult to use as base material for a dial; aesthetically, there was a historical psychological barrier as - similar to diamond-set pieces - retrograde social constructs would see this material as more suitable for ladies; and finally there is the economic barrier of the cost of the final watch.
  
  The present piece perfectly epitomises the appeal a mother-of-pearl dial can have. The carefully selected purplish/rose hue of the dial material is a perfect complement to the luxurious pink gold case. The sunken subsidiary dials not only add tridimensionality, but as the light hits them from a slightly different angle than the main plate they appear slightly darker or lighter than the rest of the dial, granting the ensemble a somewhat “two-tone finish”.
- Artist Biography
  Audemars Piguet
  Swiss • 1881
  A specialist in the manufacture of complications since it was established in 1881, Audemars Piguet never ceases to impress with a rich history of creating bold, even audacious, timepieces underpinned by traditional watchmaking at its finest. This Le Brassus-based Swiss manufacturer is one of only two major manufacturers still owned by the founding family. Since its earliest days, AP is considered a leader in the field of minute repeaters and grande complication pocket and wristwatches. The brand is devoted to preserving the history of watchmaking in the Vallée de Joux, showcased at their superb museum in Le Brassus.
  Today, the brand is best known for its Royal Oak models, a revolutionary luxury sports watch launched in 1972. Other key models include early minute repeating wristwatches, vintage chronograph wristwatches, such as the oversized reference 5020, perpetual calendar watches and the Royal Oak Offshore, first introduced in 1993.
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