Royal Oak Offshore 26473 Baguette / Onyx

The Royal Oak Offshore arrived in 1993 as a deliberate provocation — a 42mm version of Gérald Genta's 1972 Royal Oak that added a chronograph, enlarged the case, and introduced rubber straps and bold colour combinations to a design that had been defined by restraint. Emmanuel Gueit's design was controversial at launch and immediately successful in the market, creating a template for the oversized luxury sports watch that would dominate the next three decades. The Offshore has since expanded to include divers, tourbillons, and perpetual calendars, always pushing the Royal Oak platform further from its origins while maintaining the octagonal bezel, exposed screws, and tapisserie dial that anchor it to the original.

Selfwinding chronograph with date display. 18-carat white gold case, entirely set with baguette-cut diamonds. 18-carat white gold dial. Hand-stitched “large square scale” black alligator strap. 159 baguette-cut diamonds ; ~16.65 carats (case, buckle). 88 baguette-cut diamonds ; ~4.80 carats (dial). 48 baguette-cut diamonds ; ~1.41 carats. 12 baguette-cut onyx ; ~0.29 carats (inner bezel).