Unveiled at Baselworld in 1972, the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak took the watch world by complete surprise. Designed by Gerald Genta, the Royal Oak was the first steel wristwatch with an integrated bracelet to be designed for the luxury marketplace. However, the now ever-popular bracelet watch was not always a success. In fact, it took decades of advertising and development to convince buyers that steel could be luxury, rather than precious metal. Interestingly, when the prototype timepiece was displayed in April at Baselworld, it was constructed from white gold. This was due to the fact that Audemars Piguet had yet to perfect polishing steel, in comparison to a much softer composition such as gold.

The present lot, Reference 25402ST, is a “C” series Royal Oak dating to 1977. It is from the third series of Royal Oak’s ever produced, and the 1049^th watch from the batch. The storied timepiece has a 39mm “Jumbo” case and a black Tapisserie dial with the original 18k white gold “AP” logo at the bottom half. The current lot presents an excellent opportunity to own an original, iconic timepiece completed with its original box and papers.