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A chronograph is a complication that measures and allows the reading of time continuously or by interval, without affecting the precision of the watch. Once activated, the push-pieces allow the chronograph hand to be started, stopped and restarted at will, then reset to zero. A chronograph is technically complex to realize because the synchronization of several components must be fast, precise and fluid.
The desire to measure and segment time predates watchmaking itself. Yet the invention of the chronograph, as we know it today, is the result of centuries of ingenuity and mechanical evolution. The mechanical chronograph emerged from the scientific and industrial revolutions of the 19th century, reflecting modern society’s growing reliance on precise time measurement.
The ability to accurately display elapsed time introduced the idea of performance, making the chronograph an essential complication across various domains, from scientific and military to cultural settings, including sports such as horse racing. The first modern chronograph (1862) featured three functions: start, stop, and zero resetting. In 1875, the two founders of Audemars Piguet immediately adopted this new feature for their pocket watches, which paved the way for the brand’s rich legacy of innovative chronograph wristwatches.
CHRONOGRAPH Watches
THE COMPLICATION OF PRECISION AND PERFORMANCE
Audemars Piguet introduced its first chronograph wristwatches in the 1930s. Produced in extremely limited numbers – with just 307 pieces before 1980 – these timepieces are among the rarest in the world. At the time, each watch crafted by the Manufacture was a unique creation, with the concept of standardised models only introduced in the 1950s.
CALIBRE 8100, A NEW CHRONOGRAPH ENERGY
Entirely reimagined to meet our clients’ expectations, the RD#5 brings together all the hallmarks of a refined chronograph: a world-first in the touch-sensitive push-pieces, an instantaneous jump minute counter, remarkable thinness, and meticulously designed ergonomics and legibility.
Giulio Papi
Director of Watchmaking Design, Audemars Piguet
SPLIT-SECONDS Hands
Split-seconds chronographs are fitted with an additional second hand that can be stopped in its tracks in order to measure an intermediate, or to maintain a reference time. When activated at the start of a race, both hands begin together. The split-seconds hand can be stopped at any moment to measure a time, while the chronograph hand continues its course. At a simple press of a push-piece, the split-seconds hand jumps back in unison with the chronograph hand.
FLYBACK CHRONOGRAPH
The flyback function on a chronograph enables to reset and instantaneously restart the chronograph hands without having to stop the chronograph first.
A watch is born
Follow the making of our latest in-house chronograph with flyback function, Calibre 4401. All our movements are born from the expertise of our watchmakers, engineers and craftspeople working in perfect harmony with cutting-edge technologies.
The goal has remained the same since 1875: to take advantage of the best of both worlds to create innovative mechanisms finished with exquisite decorations and assembled by hand.
LAPTIMER CHRONOGRAPH
In 2010, Michael Schumacher challenged Audemars Piguet engineers to create a mechanical wristwatch that could measure multiple consecutive lap times on the racetrack, without having to restart the stopwatch at the end of each lap. This could only be done digitally before! Five years later, the Manufacture released the Laptimer, featuring a single chronograph with flyback function driving two central sweep-seconds hands that can be controlled independently via three push-pieces.
This patented mechanism features no fewer than three column wheels. One of the column wheels, located at six o'clock, controls the chronograph sequence; while the two other wheels, positioned at twelve o'clock, control the complex laptimer sequence.
Explore the timepieces
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Find a boutique
We invite you to visit our AP Houses and boutiques to explore a variety of Audemars Piguet timepieces and receive expert watch servicing from our skilled professionals, by appointment or walk-in.