Watch Paparazzi

Entrepreneur Sébastian Vivas spotted wearing Audemars Piguet

At the Reggia di Venaria, the Baroque royal palace near Turin, Audemars Piguet gathered enthusiasts and press to mark the 50th anniversary of the Royal Oak. Among those present was Sébastien Vivas, Director of the Audemars Piguet Museum, who arrived wearing what may be the single most historically resonant Royal Oak in the room: reference 25810OR, the perpetual calendar produced exclusively for the manufacture's 120th anniversary in 1995.

The 25810OR sits within the lineage of Royal Oak perpetual calendars that Audemars Piguet pioneered through the late 1970s and 1980s. Built around calibre 2120/2800 — a slim self-winding movement incorporating the legendary 2120 base, itself just 2.45mm thick — the watch achieves a perpetual calendar complication within a case profile that remains entirely wearable. The 18k rose gold case measures 39mm and retains all the architectural hallmarks of Gérald Genta's original 1972 design: the octagonal bezel with eight hexagonal screws, the integrated bracelet, the "tapisserie" dial. The perpetual calendar displays day, date, month, and moon phase with the understated layout AP refined through the 1990s.

Reference 25810OR carries significant weight in collector circles precisely because of its anniversary context. Pieces produced for internal milestones at manufactures of this calibre rarely reach the open market in volume, and the 120th anniversary edition was never a standard catalogue reference. Examples appear infrequently at auction, and when they do, provenance and condition drive considerable premiums. The rose gold configuration adds desirability: 1990s AP rose gold is a warmer, distinctly period-correct alloy that collectors actively seek.

That this particular watch is worn by Vivas himself — the custodian of AP's institutional memory — gives the sighting an additional layer of meaning. Vivas oversees the Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet and is among the foremost authorities on the brand's history. His choice to wear the 25810OR at a 50th Royal Oak anniversary event, rather than a newer reference, reads as a deliberate curatorial statement. He also reminded those present that the original brief for a sporty steel watch came from an Italian client — a detail that made the Venaria setting quietly appropriate.

On the grey market, verified examples of the 25810OR command prices well above standard perpetual calendar Royal Oaks of the era, reflecting both rarity and the anniversary provenance. Collectors pursuing 1990s AP complications in rose gold should expect to search patiently.