15002, Royal Oak
1996. Royal Oak 15002BA, No. 10. Date. Calibre 2121, movement 405977. Bracelet 944. Gilt dial with T21 Tapisserie pattern. 39 mm Case D67606 in 18-carat yellow gold. Sold in 1996. Audemars Piguet Heritage, inv. 2127.
1996. Photograph of Model 15002ST presented in the 1996–1997 General Catalogue. Audemars Piguet Archives.
1996. Photograph of Model 15002BA presented in the 1996–1997 General Catalogue. Audemars Piguet Archives.
Circa 1995. Identification photograph of Model 15002. Audemars Piguet Archives.
In 1996, the Royal Oak 15002 heralded the third chapter in the history of the Royal Oak "Jumbo", following Model 5402 (1972) and the 14802 jubilee series (1992).
Plans to relaunch an ultra-thin 39 mm Royal Oak in a non-limited version were initiated as early as 1991, but were put on hold to give priority to the Royal Oak Jubilée 14802. The Royal Oak 15002 did not emerge until 1996, by which time most of the 1,000 timepieces in the anniversary limited series had been sold.
Model 15002 is almost entirely faithful to the original Royal Oak Model 5402: monocoque case, solid caseback, dial with Tapisserie pattern, tapering bracelet. Only the angle of the bevelled bezel has been slightly increased (45 degrees compared to the previous 40 degrees).
The launch was confidential, with hardly a mention in the catalogue. Production remained very limited. In 1996, only 95 units left Le Brassus, representing 0.5% of the year's production. In 1997 (the year of the Royal Oak's 25th anniversary) the figure dropped to 78, then 21 the following year and so on.
The archives do not explain the reasons for this extreme discretion. Perhaps it is due to the simultaneous rise of the Royal Oak Offshore (42 mm) and the Mini Royal Oak (20 mm), the introduction of the tourbillon in 1997 and the Grand Complication version. This under-the-radar Model 15002 barely exceeded a total of 200 units.
It was not until the creation of Model 15202 in 2000 that the Royal Oak "Jumbo" became a success again, and ‘rescued’ the legendary Calibre 2121. More modern and featuring an open caseback, a Grande Tapisserie dial as well as new colours, production of Model 15202 exceeded 10,000 units across two decades.
Total production: 206 units between 1996 and 2002, of which 95 (1996), 78 (1997), 21 (1999), 10 (2000) and 2 (2002).
Derived from Model 5402.
In 1996, the Royal Oak 15002 heralded the third chapter in the history of the Royal Oak "Jumbo", following Model 5402 (1972) and the 14802 jubilee series (1992).
Plans to relaunch an ultra-thin 39 mm Royal Oak in a non-limited version were initiated as early as 1991, but were put on hold to give priority to the Royal Oak Jubilée 14802. The Royal Oak 15002 did not emerge until 1996, by which time most of the 1,000 timepieces in the anniversary limited series had been sold.
Model 15002 is almost entirely faithful to the original Royal Oak Model 5402: monocoque case, solid caseback, dial with Tapisserie pattern, tapering bracelet. Only the angle of the bevelled bezel has been slightly increased (45 degrees compared to the previous 40 degrees).
The launch was confidential, with hardly a mention in the catalogue. Production remained very limited. In 1996, only 95 units left Le Brassus, representing 0.5% of the year's production. In 1997 (the year of the Royal Oak's 25th anniversary) the figure dropped to 78, then 21 the following year and so on.
The archives do not explain the reasons for this extreme discretion. Perhaps it is due to the simultaneous rise of the Royal Oak Offshore (42 mm) and the Mini Royal Oak (20 mm), the introduction of the tourbillon in 1997 and the Grand Complication version. This under-the-radar Model 15002 barely exceeded a total of 200 units.
It was not until the creation of Model 15202 in 2000 that the Royal Oak "Jumbo" became a success again, and ‘rescued’ the legendary Calibre 2121. More modern and featuring an open caseback, a Grande Tapisserie dial as well as new colours, production of Model 15202 exceeded 10,000 units across two decades.
Total production: 206 units between 1996 and 2002, of which 95 (1996), 78 (1997), 21 (1999), 10 (2000) and 2 (2002).
Derived from Model 5402.
1996. Royal Oak 15002ST, No. 92. Date. Calibre 2121, movement 405930. Bracelet 944. T21 Tapisserie dial. Steel case D67713 in 39 mm. Sold in 1996 to AP Fintime (Italy). Audemars Piguet Heritage, inv. 1964.
Circa 1994. Identification photograph of Model 15002ST, Roman numerals. Audemars Piguet Archives.
1995. Technical data for Model 15002ST. Audemars Piguet Archives.
Almost nine out of ten Royal Oak 15002s are made of steel. This distribution is perhaps explained by the desire to remain faithful to the original Model 5402, produced exclusively in steel for the first four years of its history.
It is so closely related to Model 5402 that some components are interchangeable, despite being almost 25 years apart.
The iconographic archives document a very surprising dial variant: white, with Roman numerals, similar to the BA version (see below), but not mentioned in the technical data
Sales from 1996 to 2002: a total of 183 units, of which 88 (1996), 77 (1997), 17 (1998), x (1999), 1 (2002).
Almost nine out of ten Royal Oak 15002s are made of steel. This distribution is perhaps explained by the desire to remain faithful to the original Model 5402, produced exclusively in steel for the first four years of its history.
It is so closely related to Model 5402 that some components are interchangeable, despite being almost 25 years apart.
The iconographic archives document a very surprising dial variant: white, with Roman numerals, similar to the BA version (see below), but not mentioned in the technical data
Sales from 1996 to 2002: a total of 183 units, of which 88 (1996), 77 (1997), 17 (1998), x (1999), 1 (2002).
Circa 1996. Identification photograph of Model 15002BA.
Circa 1996. Identification photograph of Model 15002ST, Roman numerals. Audemars Piguet Archives.
1995. Technical data for Model 15002BA. Audemars Piguet Archives.
Only 23 examples of the Royal Oak 15002 are available in yellow gold. The Product Data mentions two different dials. The first features an ivory-coloured guilloché Tapisserie pattern.
The second is also 'ivory', but its matt dial has no Tapisserie pattern and features 10 applied Roman numerals in yellow gold. No watch with such a dial has appeared on the auction market for at least a decade.
Sales from 1996 to 2002: a total of 23 units, of which 23 (1996), 1 (1997), 4 (1998), 10 (1999) and 1 (2002).
Only 23 examples of the Royal Oak 15002 are available in yellow gold. The Product Data mentions two different dials. The first features an ivory-coloured guilloché Tapisserie pattern.
The second is also 'ivory', but its matt dial has no Tapisserie pattern and features 10 applied Roman numerals in yellow gold. No watch with such a dial has appeared on the auction market for at least a decade.
Sales from 1996 to 2002: a total of 23 units, of which 23 (1996), 1 (1997), 4 (1998), 10 (1999) and 1 (2002).
