Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 14332BA

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It’s no secret that we’re huge fans of the mid-size Royal Oak executions.

The classic ‘Jumbo’ Royal Oak is a veritable design classic, but for the modestly wristed among us its dimensions can be a bit overbearing. Cue the mid-size models. Audemars Piguet began producing smaller versions of this iconic watch very soon after the introduction of the original ref. 5402. Ranging from 33 to 37 mm, depending on the reference, these are the perfect alternative for people that have smaller wrists or just prefer a more classic-sized watch.

This ref. 14332BA is an early and rare reference among these mid-size Royal Oaks. Produced for just a few years in the early 1980s, it featured a 36 mm case (slightly bigger than its predecessor, the ref. 4100) and, for the first time, a chunky screw down crown ensuring that the watch was truly waterproof.

This 18K yellow gold variety features the iconic angular case and octagonal screwed bezel with the matching 18K yellow gold integrated bracelet.  It is estimated that fewer than 300 pieces of the 14332 were produced in 18K yellow gold. The classic anthracite dial features Audemars Piguet’s iconic ‘Petite Tappisserie’ pattern together with elegant long applied 18K yellow gold indices

This rare Royal Oak variety is in exquisite condition and has just returned from a full service at our trusted Audemars Piguet service center. The watch comes with the corresponding service papers and an extract of the Audemars Piguet archives that dates it back to 1984.

Introduction

Audemars PiguetAudemars Piguet is among the holy trinity Swiss maisons d’horlogerie alongside Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin. Audemars Piguet has a storied history of producing high-complication watches. It all started in 1875, when Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet founded the company in the heart of the Vallée de Joux, Le Brassus, Switzerland. This pure, rough and wild landscape, with deep, dark forests, ice-cold waters and the omnipresence of rocks and hills, provided inspiration and raw materials for the Swiss watch manufacture to develop the finest watches. Since its inception, Audemars Piguet has specialized in rare, valuable and highly-complicated watches like perpetual calendars, chronographs and chiming watches. Nowadays, the emphasis of Audemars Piguet lies on the iconic Royal Oak line.Royal OakIn 1970, Audemars Piguet instructed Genta to come up with an unprecedented steel watch. As the story goes, he found inspiration whilst seeing a diver at work with an old-fashioned diver’s helmet near Lake Geneva. Staying up all night, Genta drew the design for a circular case with an angular, octagonal bezel, eight visible screws, and an integrated bracelet. The Royal Oak was presented in 1972 as the most expensive steel watch available and it caused an uproar: why was a distinguished maison d’horlogerie putting out a sports watch, let alone in such pedestrian material? Some experts even predicted that the Royal Oak would put Audemars Piguet out of business. Though it took a while to catch on, the Royal Oak is now one of the most iconic and long-lasting watch designs and has spawned an entire product line. It wouldn’t be the first time that Genta would prove a brand’s owners, customers, and industry experts wrong.

Specifications

Shipping

Packages are generally dispatched within 2 days after receipt of payment and are shipped within the Netherlands by Registered Mail through the Dutch carrier PostNL and for other countries by Fedex. Consult us if you prefer another method of shipping. For most destinations tracking is available.