The nice British weather may not have caught on just yet, but it’s midsummer, and for Audemars Piguet that means an abundance of colour. We’ve already covered the cool new ceramic colourway for the Royal Oak Offshore, but now it’s time for their newer, sleeker range to show off some new colour in ten new variations of the Code 11.59.
The new additions include five different dials, four of which are smoked and one of which is a simpler two-tone dial. We’ll get back to the grey and two-tone later; for now, it’s all about the beautiful purple, burgundy and blue dials, which have a smoky gradient colour that’s brighter in the centre and fades to black around the outer edge of the watch.
They appear on both the time and date model and the chronograph, and in fact, this is one of the few times I think the latter works better. The depth of colour paired with the gold indices that match the case makes for a rather lovely chronograph layout. The time and date is still great, but it feels like something is missing from its 41mm size. Scaling it down to 39mm would feel very different.
The blue and purple dials are paired with rose gold cases, while the burgundy is white gold, and it’s got it all. More interesting in this regard, however, is the case of the last two variants (four if you count the chronograph and time and date separately).
Both the black smoked lacquer and the two-tone dial are presented in a two-tone case. No big deal – instead of steel and yellow gold, Audemars Piguet opted for rose and white gold. Apparently an industry first; I can’t think of another example, but I can imagine it is. It limits the practical compromises of two-tone (cheaper and more wearable) in favor of the same look and increased bragging rights.
I have to say, though, that on the octagonal middle case of the 11.59, the look works very well, especially on the more streamlined two-tone dial. When it comes to these five new executions, it’s definitely going to be at the top of my list; the black lacquer will be at the bottom.
All watches are equipped with the same movements as the wider 11.59 collection. That means AP’s 4401 column-wheel flyback chronograph or their 4302 in the time and date, with a 70-hour power reserve. Both are, of course, very well finished.
Now if they would just offer the usual two tones of steel and gold…
Price and Specs:
Model Name: Audemars Piguet CODE 11.59 Automatic 41mm
Ref: 15210CR.OO.A002CR.01 (Smoked Grey/Two Tone)
15210CR.OO.A009CR.01 (Grey/Two Tone)
15210BC.OO.A068CR.01 (Smoked Burgundy/White Gold)
15210OR.OO.A616CR.01 (Smoked Purple/Pink Gold)
15210OR.OO.A028CR.01 (Smoked Blue/Pink Gold)
Case/Dial: 41mm diameter x 10.7mm height, white gold, rose gold or rose gold middle case with white gold bezel, lugs and caseback
Water Resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Calibre 4302, automatic
Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
Power reserve: 70h
Functions: hours, minutes, small seconds, date
Strap: hand-stitched alligator leather with pin buckle
Price: CHF 27,000, exclusive in boutique
Model name: Audemars Piguet CODE 11.59 Automatic Chronograph 41mm
Ref: 26393CR.OO.A002CR.01 (smoky grey/two-tone)
26393CR.OO.A009CR.01 (grey/two-tone)
26393BC.OO.A068CR.01 (smoky grey/burgundy/white gold)
26393OR.OO.A616CR.01 (smoky purple/rose gold)
26393OR.OO.A028CR.01 (smoky blue/rose gold)
Case/Dial: 41mm diameter x 12.6mm height, white gold, rose gold or rose gold middle case with white gold bezel, lugs and caseback
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Calibre 4401, automatic
Winding frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
Power reserve: 70h
Functions: hours, minutes, small seconds, date, chronograph
Strap: hand-stitched alligator leather with pin buckle
Price: CHF 42,600, exclusive in boutique
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