Despite the fact that Audemars Piguet has been spending a great deal of its effort building out the Code 11.59 collection, the Royal Oak will always be the brand’s flagship model. For many people, Audemars Piguet is the Royal Oak, and while the brand certainly has the desire to make sure that it does not become entirely synonymous with a singular design, you can virtually guarantee that there will never be a single year that passes in which we won’t see some type of new Royal Oak watch. That said, having an iconic design can sometimes be a bit of a double-edged sword, as changing it too much runs the risk of making it lose the very same traits that define it as an icon. As a result of this, nearly all Audemars Piguet Royal Oak watches have (more or less) offered the same core design since the early 1970s, with their dials, materials, case sizes, and complications being the only real tangible differentiating factors. As part of the brand’s latest batch of new releases, Audemars Piguet has unveiled a new version of the 37mm Royal Oak that is crafted entirely from yellow gold and fitted with a natural turquoise stone dial.

To call the new 37mm yellow gold Audemars Piguet Royal Oak (ref. 15550BA.OO. 1356BA.01) a new model is a bit of an exaggeration, as it is essentially the exact same watch as the existing 37mm version of the time-and-date Royal Oak Selfwinding, just crafted from a different metal and fitted with a new dial. Just like its siblings, the case measures 37mm in diameter by 8.9mm-thick, and it offers the classic design of the Royal Oak with its integrated lugs, octagonal bezel, and eight exposed screws. Similarly, both the front and back sides of the case are fitted with flat sapphire crystals, while a signed crown at 3 o’clock offers access to the movement and helps to create 50 meters of water resistance. In terms of its overall aesthetics, the new yellow gold 37mm Royal Oak is about as classic and traditional as can be. However, the key detail here is that this new model is crafted from 18k yellow gold (rather than rose gold), and this is something that had been previously missing from the 37mm-wide Royal Oak lineup since 2019.

The return of yellow gold to the 37mm Royal Oak collection is part of what makes this new model special, although its real party piece is the natural turquoise stone dial. Originating from Mexico, the pieces of turquoise are carefully selected before being cut and shaped into discs that measure just 0.75mm thick. Polished gold baton markers with luminescent inlays are applied to the surface of the dial, along with a matching yellow gold “Audemars Piguet” signature that sits below the 12 o’clock location. In order to showcase the natural turquoise stone surface, the dial is completely devoid of text and printing, except for a subtle black minute track and the obligatory “Swiss Made” signature at 6 o’clock. A rectangular date window sits at the 3 o’clock location with a color-matched turquoise calendar disc, while the time itself is displayed by a trio of gold centrally mounted hands in the same classic shape that can be found across the rest of the Royal Oak range.

Just like the other time-and-date models from the contemporary 37mm Royal Oak lineup, the new turquoise dial version of the yellow gold Audemars Piguet Royal Oak is powered by the Caliber 5900 automatic movement. Consisting of 186 components, the 29-jewel Audemars Piguet Cal. 5900 runs at a frequency of 28,800vph (4 Hz), while offering users a power reserve of approximately 60 hours. Originally introduced last year in 2022, the Caliber 5900 is decorated with polished anglage, circular graining, vertical brushing, and Geneva stripes, plus it is fitted with a solid 22k pink gold skeletonized oscillating weight, with all of this visible through the sapphire display caseback. Lastly, just as you’d expect, the case of the new turquoise dial 37mm Royal Oak is fitted with the collection’s signature integrated bracelet, which is crafted from solid 18k yellow gold to match the rest of the case.

Despite being just a metal and dial variation of an existing model, the new 37mm yellow gold Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding does offer a significantly different appearance from all of the other models in the brand’s current lineup. The classic yellow gold tones of the case immediately set it apart from the warmer hue of the various rose gold models, while its natural turquoise stone dial is unlike anything else currently available in the collection (despite the fact that a turquoise dial itself is hardly a novel aesthetic). The official retail price is set at $61,500 USD, which makes it sightly less expensive than its rose gold siblings, although this is simply due to the fact that all of the rose gold 37mm models currently have diamond-set bezels, while this one is the standard variety. Given how Audemars Piguet loves to endlessly iterate on the core design of the Royal Oak, I wouldn’t be surprised to see other yellow gold models added to the lineup in the future, as the bold aesthetic of a Royal Oak in full yellow gold is a tried-and-true look that has been around since the 1970s. For more information on the new turquoise dial Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding 37mm in yellow gold, visit the brand’s website.