5 Things To Know About The [Re]master01 Selfwinding Chronograph By Audemars Piguet

This timepiece marries vintage inspiration with modern technologies

Vintage Audemars Piguet chronograph watches are highly sought-after treasures among serious collectors. No surprise, since the watchmaker made them in very limited numbers. From the 1930s to the 1950s, for instance, only 307 pieces were produced. This makes the new [Re]master01—a reinterpretation of one of its archival chronographs—one of the more prominent launches this year.

Audemars Piguet stresses that this isn’t a historic reissue and is, instead, faithful to its vintage inspiration, while updated components make it very modern—in other words, all 500 owners of this limited edition will enjoy the best of both worlds.

1. Mark Of History

In place of the modern-day Audemars Piguet logo, this limited edition bears an emblem from the watchmaker’s past. The dial is inscribed with the “Audemars Piguet & Co Genève” signature, which is also found on the 1943 wristwatch the current chronograph was modelled on.

2. 1943

The [Re]master01 takes inspiration from a 1943 novelty. The Audemars Piguet team chose this model because of its heritage and its connection to what they describe as an “echo of the past”.

3. 4409

At the heart of this vintage-inspired model is the in-house Calibre 4409, a new-generation automatic chronograph mechanism with a flyback function, which is a complication that doesn’t require the chronograph to be stopped in order to reset it back to zero. It is a modification of the Calibre 4401 that powered the Code 11.59 chronograph launched last year.

4. Old Yet New

The [Re]master01 replicates the original’s round, two-tone case. Its bezel, olive-shaped pushers and chamfered crown are made from pink gold, while the lugs are made from stainless steel. What’s different is the [Re]master01’s modern-day glare-proof sapphire crystal case back, which reveals the chronograph mechanism in its full glory.

5. Bigger & Better

The original chronograph had a 36mm case that was large compared to other wristwatches made during the mid-20th century; most measured between 31 and 34mm. The [Re]master01 measures 40mm in diameter, which allows for better legibility. Chronograph counters have also been rearranged for enhanced readability.

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