This year, the Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet collection undergoes a profound evolution with the introduction of a new case size for smaller wrists, its first steel models, and a new dial design.
All teams involved had to push the boundaries of their know-how to bring these new timepieces to life, perfectly combining technical complexity, ergonomics, and aesthetic beauty.
A NEW ERGONOMIC CASE FOR SMALLER WRISTS
Audemars Piguet has launched a new 38 mm diameter in the Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet collection, with two timepieces in 18-carat pink gold in ivory or purple tones. Combining creativity and technical complexity, this new case is designed to fit comfortably on smaller wrists.
Characterized by a curved and faceted architecture composed of stylized lugs, an ultra-thin bezel, an octagonal middle case, and a round caseback, the case of the Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet is one of the most complicated ever made by the Manufacture.
The proportions of this complex three-part case had to be completely revisited to create this smaller diameter, while maintaining its aesthetic harmony. The proportions of the double-curved sapphire crystal have also been rethought. This complex glass, with an internally rounded surface and a flat outer surface from 6 to 12 o’clock, offers a unique optical experience of the dial.
A HAND-FINISHED STEEL BODY
The Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet collection welcomes its first 41 mm models in steel, a contemporary material much less malleable than gold. The Manufacture leveraged its expertise in machining and finishing to design and produce the complex architecture of the Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet case in this new material.
Combining cutting-edge technology with ancestral traditions, the industrialization of the case and the hand-finishing of its components require difficult programming, specialized tools, and highly specialized skills. Designers, engineers, and craftsmen have thus pushed the limits of their savoir-faire to create these steel elements. It took four months to develop the steel bezel and stylized arched lugs, which combine five different axes. The upper part of the steel lugs is welded to the extra-flat bezel with a hand-applied solder paste, while the lower part rests gently on the caseback, perfectly aligned once the case is assembled.
In line with Audemars Piguet’s tradition, the steel components alternate between polished and satin-finished surfaces, playing with light and creating fascinating light effects. These meticulous finishing operations require two and a half hours of work just for the bezel and lugs.