Style, travel & hobbies · /audemars-piguet-watches/
The Royal Oak is the watch that invented the luxury steel sports category in 1972, and the one that still defines it. Gérald Genta's octagonal bezel with exposed screws was considered absurd at launch — a steel watch priced above gold — and is now the most copied silhouette in watchmaking.
Thirteen pieces here, weighted towards the 15500 and 15510 references that collectors actually chase, plus the Offshore line for anyone who wants the shape at a larger size.
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Sorted most expensive first. The 15510ST 50th Anniversary green dial and the Offshore 26420CE in green ceramic are the two hardest to find at any price.
Audemars Piguet · Ref. 5402BA
The 5402 — Genta's original 1972 Royal Oak, here in solid yellow gold with the tapisserie dial. The reference every other Royal Oak descends from.
$123,000
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26424BC.ZZ.D002CA.01
The Royal Oak Offshore — Genta's octagon, bulked up and unbothered about subtlety.
$108,000
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26574ST
The steel Royal Oak perpetual calendar: moonphase, grande tapisserie dial, and a bracelet that flows straight out of the case.
$104,000
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26715OR
Solid rose gold Royal Oak chronograph with a blue tapisserie dial — warm metal, cold dial, perfect together.
$104,000
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26240OR.OO.D315CR.02
The Royal Oak: the steel watch that cost more than gold in 1972 and rewrote what luxury meant.
$92,400
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26078PO.OO.D018CR.01
The Royal Oak Offshore — Genta's octagon, bulked up and unbothered about subtlety.
$84,800
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26315OR.OO.1256OR.01
The Royal Oak: the steel watch that cost more than gold in 1972 and rewrote what luxury meant.
$83,700
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26420CE.OO.A063VE.01
The Royal Oak Offshore — Genta's octagon, bulked up and unbothered about subtlety.
$72,300
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26420CE
Green ceramic Offshore chronograph — the hardest Royal Oak finish to make, unworn.
$69,200
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26715ST.ZZ.1356ST.01
The Royal Oak: the steel watch that cost more than gold in 1972 and rewrote what luxury meant.
$66,400
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 15510ST
The 50th-anniversary Royal Oak in green — the tapisserie dial everyone chased.
$61,400
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26092CK.ZZ.D021CA.01
The Royal Oak Offshore — Genta's octagon, bulked up and unbothered about subtlety.
$59,800
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 25854TI.OO.1150TI.01
The Royal Oak Offshore — Genta's octagon, bulked up and unbothered about subtlety.
$59,800
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 14790BA
Genta's octagon in solid yellow gold with the tapisserie dial — the 14790, a collector's reference.
$59,400
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 26315ST.OO.1256ST.01
The Royal Oak: the steel watch that cost more than gold in 1972 and rewrote what luxury meant.
$53,900
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 25909BA.00.D002CR.03
Audemars Piguet at full complication — a watch built to be kept, not replaced.
$53,000
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 15500ST
The 15500 in steel — the Royal Oak at its most wearable.
$48,600
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 15500ST
The 15500 in steel, black tapisserie — the Royal Oak most people mean.
$48,600
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 5557
An AP perpetual calendar in yellow gold — moonphase and all.
$46,000
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Audemars Piguet · Ref. 77247BC
The off-centre Millenary dial in white gold — Audemars Piguet's most architectural face.
$20,400
See It at The Luxury Closet →They are successive generations of the same 41mm steel Royal Oak. The 15510 replaced the 15500 in 2022 with a redesigned dial that drops the 'AP' logo at six o'clock and reworks the tapisserie pattern. Both use the in-house 4302 movement.
The Royal Oak is the original — thinner, dressier, 37mm to 41mm. The Offshore is the larger, sportier interpretation with a chunkier case and more aggressive detailing. If you want the icon, buy the Royal Oak; if you want presence, buy the Offshore.
Hand-finishing and scarcity. The case and bracelet are finished by hand to a standard that takes far longer than the watch's steel content suggests, and Audemars Piguet produces well under demand. The steel references trade substantially above list.