Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak

One night design turned legend.

Many people today know what an AP looks like, a few know the story behind it. Design by the most creative mind of the swiss watch in the 50-80s' Gerald Genta, a train Jeweller, and goldsmith who has recruited to work with Universal Geneve in the 50s', what jumps start Genta to making watch design was the design of the Universal's Polerouter Microtors and the Golden and White Shadows during the mid-1960s. He has been creating many beautiful pieces in the 60-70s' after the Pulerouter Omega's Constellation (1959); Patek Philippe's Golden Ellipse (1968). Audemars Piguet's Royal Oak (1970),

We get back before he created the Royal Oak. Later in the late 60s' comes the Quartz Crysis (Battery watch) that put every watches manufacture at risk, many companies didn't survive , many suffer greatly, and many try to come up with the new design, that's when Audemars Piguet reach out to Genta to design the most luxury Steel watch in the 70s', AP idea was bold and outrage, the plan is to create a unique watch in Steel that cost more than an 18k solid gold watch. Genta Inspired by the traditional diver's helmet, and the strong cutting edge of the industrial era transform into the Royal Oak hard cutting line on the body and bracelet that catch light almost like a gold watch, how long Genta took to design the watch? , just one night. And the whole thing became the masterpiece of his career.

He still carries on to design more watch IWC's Ingenieur (1976); Patek Philippe's Nautilus (1976); and Cartier's Pasha de Cartier (1985). He also created his brand, which later sold to Bvlgari.