Audemars Piguet has marked its 150th anniversary with the release of a groundbreaking perpetual calendar watch. The new Caliber 7138 is the brand’s first automatic perpetual calendar movement that allows all functions to be set using only the crown—eliminating the need for case-side pushers or tools.
The perpetual calendar, or quantième perpétuel (QP), has been a part of horological history since 1762, when English watchmaker Thomas Mudge created a pocket watch capable of tracking the day, date, month, moon phase, and leap years. Though now more common among high-end brands, QPs remain a hallmark of mechanical sophistication. Among the most coveted are models from the “Holy Trinity” of watchmaking: Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, and Audemars Piguet.
Audemars Piguet’s QP history runs deep. One of its founders, Jules Louis Audemars, built a pocket watch as a student that featured a perpetual calendar alongside a quarter repeater and deadbeat seconds. The maison later introduced the first wristwatch QP with a leap year display in 1955, and in 1978 released the world’s thinnest automatic QP movement, the Caliber 2120/2800. In recent years, Audemars Piguet has gained attention for limited-edition Royal Oak QPs developed with celebrities like John Mayer and Travis Scott.
The new Caliber 7138 marks a major step forward in usability. “The magic lies in the watch’s seamless blend of technical complexity and simplicity of use,” says Ilaria Resta, CEO of Audemars Piguet.
The movement features three primary crown positions. In position one, the crown winds the watch. Position two adjusts the date forward and the month and leap year backward. Position three sets the time. A hidden fourth setting—“position two prime”—is activated by partially pressing the crown back in, engaging a separate gear system. This allows safer and more precise adjustments, even during hours when typical QPs can be damaged.
Notably, the movement eliminates the need for setting tools and reduces user error. “No more setting tools, no more brain gymnastics,” says Resta. “Everybody can set it, and everybody can wear it and enjoy one of the most romantic and exciting complications ever.”
The watch’s display layout is equally refined. It includes a day and 24-hour indicator at 9 o’clock, a date window at 12, a month and leap year counter at 3, and week numbers displayed around the rehaut, read via a central pointer hand.
The Caliber 7138 blends historical reverence with modern engineering, redefining how wearers interact with one of watchmaking’s most complex complications.