Audemars Piguet Pink Gold John Schaffer Jump Hour Repeater Watch Ref. 25798

The reference 25798 belongs to one of the most fascinating chapters of modern Audemars Piguet. Created during the 1990s in a limited edition of just 25 pieces, the John Schaeffer combines two complications deeply rooted in the manufactures history: a digital jumping-hour display and a minute repeater. The result is remarkably discreet for a watch of such mechanical complexity.

Its origins reach back to an extraordinary early Audemars Piguet commission made for American industrialist John Wallace Schaeffer. Schaeffer commissioned a cushion-shaped minute-repeating wristwatch from the manufacture in the early 20th century, a design that would later inspire a small family of complicated John Schaeffer watches during the 1990s. Rather than simply reproduce the historic watch, Audemars Piguet used its distinctive cushion-shaped architecture as the foundation for a series of technically ambitious interpretations.

The present reference 25798 is perhaps one of the purest expressions of the concept. Its approximately 33mm pink-gold case dispenses with a conventional dial and hands entirely. Instead, the time is read through two apertures: the hours appear digitally through a small rectangular window, while the minutes are displayed through a sweeping fan-shaped aperture below. The almost austere presentation provides little indication of the mechanical complexity beneath.

Inside is the manually wound calibre 2865G, combining the unusual jumping digital display with a traditional minute repeater striking the time on two gongs. A repeater slide integrated into the case band activates the mechanism, while the sapphire caseback reveals a movement executed in the traditional manner associated with Audemars Piguets complicated watchmaking.

This example remains in wonderful condition, showing only minor evidence of wear. The softly rounded surfaces of the pink-gold cushion case remain well defined, preserving the unusual proportions that give the John Schaeffer much of its character.

Produced in an edition of only 25 pieces, the reference 25798 represents a particularly compelling period at Audemars Piguet: one in which the manufacture revisited its extraordinary archive of complicated wristwatches while continuing to experiment with unconventional displays and traditional high complications. Quiet in appearance yet mechanically sophisticated, the John Schaeffer is a distinctly different expression of Audemars Piguet from the Royal Oak for which the manufacture is best known.