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In addition to being regarded as one of Genta’s greatest works, the Royal Oak is a truly revolutionary design and is widely considered a legitimate horological icon. While the full-size “Jumbo” is typically the go-to model for those looking to add a Royal Oak to their collections, the mid-size reference 4100 offers a highly compelling alternative that has been gaining a lot of attention recently. In our most recent episode of What Is On My Wrist, Craft + Tailored’s CEO Cameron Barr takes a closer look at a stunning 1980s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak ref. 4100ST with a beautiful tropical dial and explains why he actually prefers the mid-size version of this Gerald Genta classic, compared to its more popular “Jumbo” sibling.
While watch collecting trends as a whole have been starting to favor slightly more compact case sizes in recent years, the price difference between the mid-size Royal Oak and the “Jumbo” is remains significant – largely due to the fact the smaller reference 4100 series was introduced later and was produced in larger quantities compared to the original full-size model. The mid-size alternative offers much of the same overall impact as the full-size version, but can often be had at a fraction of the price. The mid-sized Royal Oak first appeared in 1976 with the ref. 4100 series and over the years, it has been produced in a fairly wide assortment of different materials and configurations, with the reference 4100ST being the standard entry-level model in full stainless steel.
Powering the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 4100ST is the Caliber 2123 automatic movement, which is based on the same Jaeger-LeCoultre cal. 888 that serves as the basis for the movement found inside the original mid-size version of the Patek Philippe Nautilus. While Gerald Genta’s original vision for both models was for them to be simple two-handed watches, the cal. 2123 movement inside the AP Royal Oak 4100 series saw it gain the addition of a centrally-mounted running seconds hand, just like how the Nautilus ref. 3800 received the same addition when it came time to shrink it down for its mid-sized format.
This particular example features a stunning tropical dial that is the result of the color in the lacquer layer on its surface fading or deteriorating over the years. A similar effect can be found on both the “Jumbo” and mid-size versions of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and Patek Philippe Nautilus that were produced during the era, and the dark anthracite color that would have originally been on the dial of this particular example has faded and gone clear over the years, revealing the warm golden tones of the metal surface below. No two tropical dials will be exactly alike, and in the case of this particular example, its surface has slowly transformed to create a rich metallic brown color with a warmth that is similar to the crema on a perfectly made cappuccino.
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