Introducing Audemars Piguet's New Sand Gold Alloy

It’s always a special occasion when the likes of Audemars Piguet unveils new timepieces. However, when the manufacture introduces a brand-new gold alloy of their own making along with a new watch, the occasion is doubly charged. Audemars Piguet did exactly this earlier in 2024, when it announced a new Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Openworked rendered in an all-new proprietary gold alloy.

Aptly named sand gold, the maison states that when it set out to formulate this new precious metal in 18k gold, it wanted a hue reminiscent of undulating sun-kissed dunes across the expansive desert, a shade that fell somewhere between white and pink gold.

As 24k gold is pure with no added metals, 18k gold contains 75 percent of the precious alloy and 25 percent of other metals that are mostly used to colour the gold. In this instance, it starts with copper, followed by palladium to obtain the pink gold shade.

Audemars Piguet also wanted the precious metal to have an intrinsic ability to reveal different shades of itself, depending on how light falls on it. The Royal Oak’s facets and lines lend themselves perfectly to the light play intended with sand gold. The manufacturer’s keen know-how in material science offers new aesthetic possibilities, bringing the product to life and delivering far beyond expectations.

The manufacture’s expertise extends beyond precious metals, captivating connoisseurs with its use of avant-garde materials, such as tantalum, titanium, alacrite, forged carbon fibre, and coloured ceramics. These materials are thoughtfully employed not merely for display, but to significantly enhance the watch’s aesthetic and tactile qualities.

Audemars Piguet went the distance with the new 41mm sand gold Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Openworked, even developing a sand gold-toned hue for the inner bezel, as well as the openworked bridges and mainplate of the watch’s selfwinding calibre 2972. This tone was applied using a galvanic treatment, as these components cannot effectively be executed in sand gold itself. The resulting timepiece is one that’s astonishingly seamless in form and colour regardless of your vantage point.

New gold, so what?

But why is creating a new gold alloy a big deal? Well, the case for how important gold is to the heritage of Audemars Piguet’s watchmaking can be summed up with the following fact: “Out of the 567 complicated wristwatches that were cased-up and delivered by the manufacture between 1882 and 1969, 432 were made in gold.” Shares Sébastian Vivas, Heritage and Museum director at Audemars Piguet: “With sand gold, Audemars Piguet is reviving the creative approach to gold alloys and colours that prevailed for thousands of years until the 1960s.”

Audemars Piguet has already gone on to create yet another monumental timepiece in sand gold, given its importance. The [RE]Master02, launched mid-2024, is the manufacture’s second chapter penned towards the [RE]Master collection.

Ilaria Resta, Audemars Piguet’s CEO, explains: “Audemars Piguet has always been attached to its past, while looking to the future. The [RE]Master collection perfectly embodies this spirit and pays tribute to our long watchmaking tradition, marked by timepieces that are emblematic of their era, reinterpreted today using the most advanced technologies and a resolutely contemporary approach.”

Designed in the spirit of an asymmetrical watch, the [RE]Master02 is a revival piece that Audemars Piguet launched in 1960, the 5159BA. What’s even more significant is that only seven pieces of the 5159BA were produced back then, making the piece a rarity of the highest order.

The 5159BA’s asymmetrical yellow gold case measured 27.5mm along its longest edge. Its dial was unlike any other, with slender hour markers exploding towards its edges from the offset central pinion. Vivas adds, “Between 1959 and 1963, Audemars Piguet created more than 30 asymmetrical models, most of which were produced in less than 10 pieces each. [RE]Master02 is a fantastic opportunity to revive this forgotten golden age.”

Crafting the Future

The unabashedly angular, brutalist case of the 5159BA has now been reimagined as the [RE]Master02, a 250-piece limited edition rendered in sand gold. At 41mm, the new timepiece’s case is larger than the original model; its sharp lines, brushed and polished surfaces even more amplified by the visual strength of sand gold.

The dial of the [RE]Master02 is another point of interest, as it features 12 triangular segments of different sizes and shapes that are separated by galvanised partitions in a sand gold tone. These segments were meticulously assembled to form the final watch face. The specific blue shade on the dial is Audemars Piguet’s very own shade of Bleu Nuit, Nuage 50.

The [RE]Master02 is powered by the calibre 7129—visible through the watch’s exhibition caseback—a variation of the calibre 7121 first introduced in the 2022 Royal Oak “Jumbo” Extra-Thin models. Additionally, the movement boasts a sand gold-toned 22k gold rotor that echoes the hue of its case. With gold being a cherished medium for Audemars Piguet, it’s interesting to consider the watches the brand chose to showcase its latest proprietary sand gold.

For instance, the 41mm Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Openworked represents a landmark moment, as it was the first Royal Oak to be equipped with a selfwinding flying tourbillon. The [RE]Master02 is noteworthy, as it reprises a rarity from Audemars Piguet’s history books. This is proof of the value Audemars Piguet places on its heritage as it shapes its future.

Click here to discover the Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Openworked and [RE]Master02.