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 39 mm Slate 18k
Reference 65510OR.59
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Audemars Piguet
- Collection
- Code 11.59
- Model
- Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 39 mm Slate 18k
- Reference number
- 65510OR.59
- Year / era
- 1994 · 1990s — mechanical revival
- Complication
- Annual calendar
- Movement
- In-house automatic with 22k gold rotor
- Case material
- 18k white gold
- Dial type
- Slate grey
- Strap / bracelet
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Water resistance
- 30 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 39 mm
- Case thickness
- 8.8 mm
- Case material
- 18k white gold
- Bezel
- Smooth polished
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Slate grey
- Hands
- Mercedes hour hand with Chromalight display
- Indexes
- Applied Arabic numerals with luminous coating
- Bracelet / strap
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 30 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 72E — In-house automatic with 22k gold rotor
- Movement type
- High-frequency automatic
- Frequency
- 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 72 hours
- Number of jewels
- 25 jewels
- Complications
- Annual calendar
- Functions
- GMT second time zone, date
- Watchmaker
- The calibre is built in-house and adjusted in five positions before delivery.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1994 – 2009
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- 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 39 mm Slate 18k sits within Audemars Piguet's Code 11.59 line, introduced in 1994. It carries the house codes established since 1875 — 18k white gold case, slate grey dial and in-house automatic with 22k gold rotor — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
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.