Everyone knows Audemars Piguet for the sexy, sporty and sleek Royal Oak. Made of steel and hand-finishing usually reserved for gold, the first-ever luxury sport watch bridged the seemingly incompatible worlds of jewellery and sports watches, culminating in a silhouette that became an instant synonym for affluence in pop culture.

But the Royal Oak has never been spotlighted like this. Developed by Audemars Piguet and co-designed with the manufacture’s head of gemmology, Nathalie Barzilay, the Royal Oak Joaillerie collection isolates the watch’s beloved bracelet pattern and adds bold gemstones to create extra-exquisite Royal Oaks that are not meant to tell time. It retains the octagonal bezel, hexagonal screws, and integrated bracelet of tapering links, yet remains undeniably Royal Oak. Only more evolved and precious.

Divided into three lines titled Risoud Eclipse, Dream of Joux, and Frosted Gold, the Royal Oak Joaillerie collection amplifies the timepiece’s geometric codes while celebrating the textures, colour gradients and motifs of the manufacture’s home – the Vallée de Joux.

A dreamy, rhythmic arrangement of pear-shaped diamonds and snow-set blue sapphires on blue titanium, it mirrors a blooming winter wonderland: with striking sugarloaf emeralds framed by brilliant-cut diamonds set on black PVD titanium links and studs, and with alternating satin brushing and polished chamfers amplifying the subtle halo of a wearable eclipse.

It is the Frosted Gold line that most iconically champions this dispatch of treasures. Featuring the shimmering ancient Florentine technique developed with jewellery designer Carolina Bucci in 2016 for the 40th anniversary of the women’s Royal Oak, the Royal Oak’s bracelet sings solo, but as chokers and cuffs, it feels completely at home in today’s design landscape.

Once you are done with this story, click here to catch up with our November 2026 issue.