Salmon Dial 25820PT Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar

In 1996, the Royal Oak QP became a lot more usable. Leap year indication was born, in ref. 25820PT. Collectors divide true vintage from neo-vintage Royal Oak QP around this mark. And while vintage RO QP is genesis and hugely sexy, it’s worth remembering that a leap year is actually super useful in setting. The 25820 had an immense run from 1996 until 2013, but still only 1235 examples were made in total. 74 of those were platinum. Of those, about 20 are thought to look like this, with a gorgeous salmon dial.

Salmon dial Royal Oaks didn’t start with the 15202BC. It’s either the 14820ST Jubilee from 1992 or (a tiny probability) the 25654 RO QP. We know the 25654 started earlier in 1987, but just when salmon dials came to ref. is very hard to track down. In the RO QP, AP were almost open to request so to speak. If not the first, RO QP was one of the very earliest models to have salmon. It is one of the most attractive combinations that exists, the classic palette of Swiss special orders, arguably only second to Tuscan in my book. And it belongs here. It’s also worth noting that the new interpretation in 15202 has a more copper tone than this 25820. The 25820 is true salmon, where the 15202 has more gold in it. It’s a hard watch to not love.

The auction results of this specific salmon 25820PT spec have been wild. In 21, Autiquorum hammered one at 192K USD, probably not original going by result. The next year, Phillips sold one for 558K. Since then, all results have floated from 300-400K. Condition is king and one needs to be sure the watch was born with the dial. This was after the transition to grande tapisserie, and they all had the mixed caps signature. That’s all good. But AP let clients retroactively order dials in this period, which should always be disclosed if indeed that’s the case. This is the second one I’ve ever seen outside of auction. For all-time great Royal Oaks, this is up there.

This example looks great. The case is quite strong, with lovely edges. The dial is showing only light signs of patina. It comes with the rotor box, warranty, and guarantee papers noting the correct reference, from a well-regarded Swiss retailer.