Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Audemars Piguet · Code 11.59
Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 38 mm Ice 18k
Reference 49479OR.47
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Audemars Piguet
- Collection
- Code 11.59
- Model
- Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 38 mm Ice 18k
- Reference number
- 49479OR.47
- Year / era
- 1996 · 1990s — mechanical revival
- Complication
- Tourbillon
- Movement
- In-house manual-winding, hand-finished
- Case material
- 18k yellow gold
- Dial type
- Ice blue
- Strap / bracelet
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Water resistance
- 150 m
- Limited-edition status
- Limited edition of 250 pieces
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 38 mm
- Case thickness
- 11.3 mm
- Case material
- 18k yellow gold
- Bezel
- Fluted 18k gold
- Crystal
- Sapphire with internal AR treatment
- Dial
- Ice blue
- Hands
- Rhodium-plated baton hands with luminous fill
- Indexes
- Applied faceted white-gold indexes
- Bracelet / strap
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Clasp / buckle
- Folding clasp in matching case metal
- Water resistance
- 150 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 31A — In-house manual-winding, hand-finished
- Movement type
- Automatic with micro-rotor
- Frequency
- 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 72 hours
- Number of jewels
- 25 jewels
- Complications
- Tourbillon
- Functions
- Hours, minutes, seconds, date
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1996 – 2011
- Limited-edition quantity
- 250 pieces
- Current market information
- Trades close to retail on the secondary market, with steady demand for full-set examples.
Designer
Gérald Genta
Gérald Genta (1931–2011) trained as a goldsmith in Geneva and became the most influential watch designer of the 20th century. Working freelance, he sketched the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak overnight in 1970, followed by the Patek Philippe Nautilus, the IWC Ingenieur SL and the Bulgari Bulgari — defining the integrated-bracelet luxury sports watch as a category.
Historical significance
Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 38 mm Ice 18k sits within Audemars Piguet's Code 11.59 line, introduced in 1996. It carries the house codes established since 1875 — 18k yellow gold case, ice blue dial and in-house manual-winding, hand-finished — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- Early production dials show a slightly different minute track, and collectors pay a premium for them.
The House
Audemars Piguet
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1875
- Founder
- Jules Louis Audemars & Edward Auguste Piguet
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Ultra-Luxury & Haute Horlogerie
- Major collections
- Royal Oak, Royal Oak Offshore, Royal Oak Concept, Code 11.59, Millenary, Jules Audemars, [Re]master01
- Signature technologies
- Shock-absorbing movement mounting · Composite and ceramic case materials · Certified chronometer regulation
- Famous movements
- In-house tourbillon, manual-winding · In-house automatic with 22k gold rotor · In-house manual-winding, hand-finished · In-house automatic micro-rotor
- Notable watches
- Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 44 mm Ice Ceramic (1993) · Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 37 mm Salmon Ceramic (1959) · Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 39 mm Slate Ceramic (1972) · Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 40 mm Black Ceramic (1980)
Brand history
Audemars Piguet has spent more than 151 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Royal Oak, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Jules Louis Audemars & Edward Auguste Piguet established Audemars Piguet in 1875, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Audemars Piguet calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1875
Jules Louis Audemars & Edward Auguste Piguet founds Audemars Piguet in Switzerland.
1899
Audemars Piguet earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces Audemars Piguet to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Audemars Piguet enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Audemars Piguet continues to produce Royal Oak, Royal Oak Offshore, Royal Oak Concept and other icons in limited numbers.