The most dominant trend in the watch industry continues to be vintage revivals. And invariably, it’s the brands with a rich tapestry of work in their historical archives that tend to thrive here. Audemars Piguet now looks back at a mid-20th century model to create the [Re]master01 self-winding chronograph. Though the inspiration is vintage, the timepiece is a thoroughly modern interpretation of the original.

A Ref. 1533 that was sold at a Phillips auction

Due to the nature of their business in the 1930s and 1950s, Audemars Piguet’s timepieces from this era are unique pieces because they were not produced in series. As a matter of fact, only 307 chronographs were made in this period. The product development team picked the Ref. 1533 from 1943 for their first [Re]master project because of “the specific aesthetic and emotional connections” they all felt. Only nine Ref. 1533 models were made, only in three stainless steel and gold. Unusually large for that era (the watch had a 36 mm case), it was powered by a Valjoux 13VZAH movement. Incidentally, a Ref. 1533 from 1941 sold for CHF305,000 at the Phillips Geneva auction in 2015.

The new vintage revival Audemars Piguet [Re]master01

The new chronograph has a limited run, only 500 pieces will be made, and it does a fabulous job of evoking the spirit of the original with its two-tone steel and pink gold case complemented by a champagne dial. The [Re]master01 features a modern 40 mm stainless steel case with the distinct teardrop-shaped lugs of the original. Its slim bezel, olive-shaped chronograph pushers and chamfered crown are in 18k pink gold.

Cue the teardrop lugs and the two tone accents of the case

The satin-brushed champagne dial has black transferred hour-markers and pink gold hour, minute and seconds hands. Steeled blue chronograph hands and a blue transferred tachymetric scale add a pop of color to the dial. Pay attention to the Art Deco-inspired numerals and the signature “Audemars Piguet & Co Genève” on the dial. Between 1887 and right up to the mid-1970s, AP had a workshop in Geneva to be closer to its customers and also facilitate trade distribution within Europe.

The 40 mm case sits well on the wrist

The chronograph has a tri-compax layout with a 12 hour counter at 3 o’ clock and a running seconds sub-dial at 6. The 30-minute counter at 9 has a 4/5 indication above the 15 minute mark just like in the original. This indication was done at the behest of Jacques-Louis Audemars to help time the duration of each half of this favourite sport, football.

The rotor is made from 22k pink gold

The watch is powered by a new automatic movement - Caliber 4409 is an integrated chronograph with column wheel and flyback function and is visible thanks to a sapphire crystal caseback. This chronograph is from the same family of chronograph calibers that was used in the Code 11:59 collection last year. Caliber 4409 has a 22K carat pink gold oscillating weight that matches the tone of the bezel. The rotor is satin-brushed and decorated with “Clous de Paris” pattern and it can amass a power reserve of 70 hours.

The 4/5 indication on the minutes sub-dial is just like in the original

The watch is paired with a light brown hand-stitched calfskin but it also comes with an additional dark brown alligator strap. Limited to 500 pieces, the [Re]master01 is a fine return to form for Audemars Piguet whose attempt last year at launching a contemporary collection the Code 11:59 was, to put it mildly, a damp squib. The [Re]master 01 is priced at CHF53,400 (Approx. AED200,110).