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The Raging Fire.
If you’re the kind of person who walks past a gallery and stops at the painting that looks like a portal to another dimension—or at least to a very dramatic Roman cathedral—you’ll want to take a closer look. This isn’t just another vintage Audemars Piguet in gold. This is AP’s Ellipse with a Pietersite dial. And unless you’re regularly lurking in the inventories of obscure collectors or spelunking through auction archives, chances are you’ve never seen one.
Let’s start with the stone. Pietersite isn’t just rare in watches—it’s practically mythological. A stormy fusion of hawk’s eye and tiger’s eye, it’s known as the “Tempest Stone,” and frankly, the name fits. The dial shimmers in reds, browns, golds, and flashes of silvery-blue like a lightning fire storm trapped under crystal. In direct sun, it looks like it’s alive. Indoors, it turns contemplative. Either way, it doesn’t sit still.
Set against this turbulent canvas: diamond indices, neatly tucked at each hour like they’re watching the chaos politely from a safe distance. The gold Audemars Piguet logo is printed in a tone that harmonizes with the hands, keeping the face coherent while the stone swirls in its own orbit.
The 18K yellow gold case is equally ambitious. At 29 by 32mm, it’s elliptically shaped and deeply carved on the bezel, almost like the frame of a baroque mirror. Then AP switches it up—the case sides feature a totally different pattern: circular motifs that feel more like hammered gold medallions than machine work. Every inch is doing something different, and yet, it works.
The bracelet is no afterthought either. It’s fully integrated, done in a V-link pattern with repeating rice beads that that feels one part armor, one part Roman ornament. It wraps the wrist like it was poured there. And it fits up to 7 inches with two micro-adjust positions, just in case you’re feeling more Saint-Tropez than Swiss chalet that day.
Under the hood you'll find a manual-wound AP caliber 2080 movement. Old school in all the best ways. No rotor hum, just quiet ticking and the satisfaction of winding something rare.
The weight? 89 grams of solid yellow gold. Not light. Not subtle. But then again, neither is a painting by Caravaggio—and no one complains about that.
This watch is in great condition.
The case lines and carvings are intact with no signs of overpolishing. The serial numbers and hallmarks at the case back are deep with normal hairline scratches throughout.
There is a hairline in the stone dial along the left side, only visible under strong magnification (like these macro lens photos), and not noticeable during wear or with the naked eye.
The crystal and hands are perfect.
The 7inch integrated bracelet is supple and in excellent condition with no nicks or breaks.
