The perfect fake Audemars Piguet Royal Oak turns 50 this year, and we’ve already had one hell of a party. Remember the new “Jumbo,” ref. 16202? That was only announced to the world in January of this year. Karl Lagerfeld’s Royal Oak came up for auction, and so did Gérald Genta’s. We took a close look at the luxury replica Audemars Pigeut Royal Oak A2, the oldest known example of the original 15202 reference, and then we went ahead and broke open the entire history of the watch in the latest episode of Reference Points. There’ve already been so many memorable moments dedicated to the top copy Audemars Piguet Royal Oak this year, and yet today’s announcement might just be my favorite.
The best 1:1 fake Audemars Piguet Royal Oak has always been controversial. The original 1972 design was just so incredibly, inherently subversive for its era, and somehow a half-century later I find that it continues to stand alone in the luxury sport-watch segment, surrounded by a sea of pretenders. In my view, not a single competitor has come close to channeling both virility and elegance in the same package to the same degree. And the blue-ceramic CA super clone Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar brings out the best of both of those qualities, combining the ultra-hard ceramic material and aggressive styling with the same high-grade movement and the same delicate brushing and polishing of the case and bracelet that Audemars Piguet replica for sale collectors expect.
It’s hard not to see a watch like this as a certain type of pinnacle for the Swiss movement replica Audemars Piguet Royal Oak anniversary. There’s a futuristic material that’s incredible difficult to work, now combined with one of the most traditional and elaborate complications, all inside of a genuinely iconic package.