Audemars Piguet “5402ST B-Series” Royal Oak

Description

Offered here is an incredibly attractive example of the rare and insanely popular Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, Reference 5402, circa 1976.  Designed by Gerald Genta, the Royal Oak is the focal point and main attraction for the legendary watchmaker, and these first execution models have soared in popularity – finding a nice example has become harder and harder.  This particular example is from their second batch of production, or “B” series, of only allegedly one thousand were produced.

The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak offered here is in great vintage condition.  The case does not appear to have been polished in the past, with a perfect and sharp case, bezel, and bracelet.  The dial is beautiful, with a warm blue color, with no aging, which is typically seen on these dials.  The original tritium lume is still present in both dial aged to a nice yellow color; the hands appear to be possibly very early service replacements, not as thick as more recent service replacements, and filled with tritium lume, similar in aging/color to the dial, albeit glowing longer than the dial when exposed to UV light. The bracelet is in excellent condition, with no stretch, and will fit an approximate 7″ wrist.

The watch is accompanied by an Extract from the Archives of Audemars Piguet, showing the original date of production to 1976.