We will not hide that for us, this brand is one of our most beloved, and we always approach every piece that comes our way with anticipation and concealed excitement. And so today, as we have the opportunity and pleasure to write about one of its greatest, not to say "gigantic" representatives, we will try to do so in a fitting manner.
For us (and probably for many other people), the Royal Oak is precisely the most iconic model of Audemars Piguet, and the reasons for this are countless. Beginning its journey in the 70s, thanks to the light hand of Gérald Genta, this series has undergone numerous editions, but a few things have never changed – the octagonal case, the "waffle" dial, the design of the lugs, etc.
In 2003, the brand decided to experiment with the case size and for the first time released a model that became emblematic among all fans of the brand, namely the Terminator T3. This watch was born as the fruit of a collaboration between two icons – AP and Arnold – this cooperation has several models and invariably each of them becomes popular, sought-after, and valuable. But since such a size would have few potential customers (at least that's what AP thought at its launch), they released it in only 750 pieces – 500 black and 250 white dials. The success was remarkable and the pieces sold out very quickly – and now, 20 years later, they continue to be just as sought-after and to increase their value on the secondary market. Emboldened by their success, AP looked among their other partners, brand ambassadors, and simply friends in search of another emblematic figure, and the answer came by itself – Shaquille O'Neal. Doctor Shaq is perhaps the most suitable godfather for AP's next gigantic watch – and not only because of his popularity, but of course because of his impressive dimensions – 2.16 m, 147 kg, and size 56 shoes… You would probably agree that on this man's wrist, even the water meter from your grandmother's house would look right at home…
Thus, in 2007, the next giant in AP's model range was born; this time it was steel (unlike the titanium T3) and was offered in a bolder edition of 960 pieces, and in addition, a very limited series of 96 pieces in gold cases with diamond bezels was launched – specifically aimed at a certain group of specific admirers of Doctor Shaq.
The connection with "The Big Aristotle" is apparent at first glance – the numerals "2" and "3" are swapped (to pay tribute to Shaq's eternal number – "32"), the solid case back bears an engraving of Shaq's iconic dunking silhouette, and the inner box is in the shape and size of a basketball made of solid wood, inside of which is the watch itself, beneath which the basketball player's number and his personal autograph are proudly inscribed.
As most of you probably know, in the first versions of its Offshore chronographs, AP used the caliber 2226/2840, this was the case until 2007 inclusive, when this cult movement was replaced by the new in-house 3126/3840 – a modular chronograph based on the 3120 with a Dubois Depraz chronograph module – operating at AP's usual frequency of 21,600 vibrations, with 365 parts, 59 jewels, over 50 hours of power reserve, and to emphasize the noble origin of the movement, the balance is made of 22-karat gold – this model is in fact one of the first to receive this movement.
