Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 Rose Gold — Skeleton Ultra-Complication Universelle Dial | Ref. 26398OR.OO.D002CR.01

The Code 11.59 Ultra-Complication Universelle RD#4 represents the apex of Audemars Piguet's ambition — a watch that compresses the entirety of horological complication into a single 42 mm rose gold case. Bearing the RD#4 designation reserved for the manufacture's most significant research and development milestones, Ref. 26398OR.OO.D002CR.01 contains no fewer than 23 complications across its extraordinary calibre, a feat that places it among the most technically complex wristwatches ever created. Gerald Genta's Code 11.59 architecture provides the ideal stage for such horological theatre.

The movement — Calibre 1000, an entirely new hand-wound creation — is visible in its full magnificence through the open-worked dial, each gear, lever and bridge exposed in 18-carat rose gold against the skeletonised canvas. The round octagonal case of the Code 11.59 is rendered here in 18-carat pink gold, framing the glareproofed double-curved sapphire crystal that gives the collection its signature optical depth. A screw-down crown and rose gold bezel complete the 42 mm case at 20 metres water resistance.

Presented on a hand-stitched leather strap with AP's proprietary folding clasp, and supplied complete with box and papers, this 2023 release is unambiguously a manufacture triumph. Priced at the very summit of the contemporary market, Ref. 26398OR belongs in the company of the world's most important timepieces — a museum-quality complication for the collector who demands everything the art of watchmaking can offer.