Time displays on watches and clocks with hour and minute hands are right up there with the ancient sundial in terms of what people think of as the very fundamentals of marking the days and nights in an ancient planetary reality that passes by oblivious to our cares of tracking it. But watchmakers in their endless ingenuity–and desire to distinguish themselves, as well as appease noteworthy clients–have certainly produced many interesting alternatives to the good old methods we so often expect. One of the most beloved, and bewitching, emerged from the house of Audemars Piguet in the 1990s. Known as the Starwheel, its entrancing system of rotating satellites in transparent sapphire were based on a wandering hours complication devised more than three centuries earlier at the behest of a Pope who’s sleep was continually marred by the incessant ticking of conventional clocks. The Brothers Campani (Giuseppe, Matteo, and Pietro) succeeded in creating a clock with a silent escapement, solving the Papal Predicament, but also delivered an additional delight: an unusual time display that substituted rotating discs for hands, and when backlit by a candle, could be easily read day or night. It was this ancient clock that inspired the Starwheel watch, originally produced in a variety of precious metals and in several different case designs, but Audemars Piguet would finally pull the plug on this mysterious beauty by the early 2000s, consigning the Starwheel to history. But now, Audemars Piguet has brought it back, this time in the controversial new Code 11:59 collection. Does it still bring the magic?
Personal views about the Starwheel, and its charms aside, there’s no question that the Code 11:59 Starwheel is a radically different interpretation than it’s 1990s predecessor. The latter, sized at a traditional 36mm represented the Audemars Piguet of “Holy Trinity” old, when it stood as much for ultra-thin, highly complicated, and dressy watches as it did for a coveted sports watch shaped vaguely like a Porthole, and all the associated variants of that line that would issue forth. Aesthetic details on the original, such as the classic hobnail (or in some variants, hand engraved filigree) pattern on the golden dial elements, the font of the Audemars Piguet signature, and the semi-circular minute track upon which the sapphire discs each with four “hours” slowly traverse, and then turn, to show the passage of time, all represent a bygone era before “Royal Oak mania” consumed all. The Code 11:59, a watch line AP has brought forth to show that the brand is more than just the Royal Oak, had to turn up the stylistic heat. The case, at a healthy 41mm in diameter, brings a lot of modernity to the concept, without straying into ridiculous excess the sorts of which the early 2000s trends were known for. This happy medium, you might say, has been buoyed further by an intricate case construction in which 18K white gold and ceramic create a union that is luxurious, yet somehow readily wearable and not overly formal. That aspect is an important one for times in which classic principles of formality are out the window, and buyers expect watches that can ride along with their lifestyle, not bog it down or look out of place.
Impressive indeed is the way in which the gorgeous aventurine glass on the dial’s lower level creates the ambience of a starry sky, giving some added mystery to the hour numeral bearing discs, now no longer in transparent sapphire, but PVD-coated aluminum. Compared to the predecessor, what charm might be lost from the view you got through the sapphire discs to the underlying mechanism below, you gain on a different level from an overall more futuristic, and bolder, to say nothing of easier to read, format. One could certainly argue, pretty effectively, that Audemars Piguet may have drawn a lot of inspiration from the many delightfully quirky wandering hour watches produced by Urwerk, but given how ridiculously cool Urwerk watches are, that’s hardly a bad thing. The complex (and costly to manufacture) double-curved sapphire crystal of the Code 11:59 is a thing to behold, and it’s optical tricks really play to the beautiful dial materials, and three dimensional thrust of the central satellite bearing the curved hour discs. In this respect, the Code 11:59 has an entirely different vibe than the classic 1990s era Starwheel watch, and stands on its own, aesthetically. It might not be as dressy or representative of a classic era of watchmaking, but it presents a face that is undeniably attractive to behold, and really showcases the high luxury aspect of AP finishing, materials, and concepts—all while not being a Royal Oak. And, wasn’t that the point after all? AP could have just thrown out a Royal Oak Starwheel, but they chose to use their controversial new design to reintroduce the complication, and that…takes some horological balls. No matter how it may be received by the public, I respect Audemars Piguet for venturing out of the almost expected Royal Oak and RO Offshore arena, and showing us why they are one of the preeminent watchmakers in the world. And in horological quality, the watch definitely shines, from the wandering hour workings (of course), to the constructive quality of the base in-house AP 4310 movement which you can see just below, a contemporary yet elegantly constructed caliber that shines with characteristic Vallee de Joux finishing finery, yet fills the case nicely as a proper movement should, all while offering a pleasingly lengthy 70 hour power reserve. Unlike the original Starwheel (which used a Jaeger-LeCoultre 889 base movement elaborated by Audemars Piguet for the wandering hours), the Code 11:59 offers up a centrally-mounted sweeping seconds function. I’m not sure I personally favor this, as the lack of a seconds hand on the original rather added to the mystery and visual calm of the slowly turning table of subtly rotating hour discs. Then again, the overall presentation of the Code 11:59 is busier and more modern than the first generation Starwheel, so a center seconds isn’t really discordant here. The second hand also creates some activity for the dial, that will certainly be preferred by some. As with many things, it really comes down to preference.
Yes, the Code 11:59 Starwheel is very much its own watch, despite springing from the same house as its illustrious predecessor, and bearing clear inspiration of that legend. So does it succeed? I think it does! There is room for both Starwheels in a collection, and I suspect the hardcore Audemars Piguet collector–especially with a genuine penchant for the house as a watchmaking powerhouse rather than a mere luxury lifestyle juggernaut–will probably feel much the same. For those customers, the steep yet not preposterous $57,900 asking price of this unusual, heavy-hitting Audemars Piguet will be a reasonable one, and the resultant presence on the wrist will create plenty of happiness as time…dare I say, rolls on by?
