Audemars Piguet has announced the return of one of the most important watches in its history: the S. Smith & Son Astronomical Watch, commonly known as the Grosse Pièce. After spending decades in private ownership, the unique pocket watch has now returned to Le Brassus and entered the AP Heritage Collection.
The watch was originally made by Audemars Piguet for S. Smith & Son, a respected London retailer active in the 19th century. At the time, it was common for elite retailers to commission movements from specialist Swiss manufactures and sell them under their own name.
The nickname Grosse Pièce, meaning “great piece” or “large piece,” comes from internal watchmaking tradition rather than marketing. It refers not only to the physical scale of the pocket watch, but to its exceptional astronomical complexity. The watch was built as a single commission and is a true one-of-one, never intended for series production.
Le Brassus, where the watch has now returned, is the village in the Vallée de Joux where Audemars Piguet was founded in 1875 and where it remains headquartered today. The region has long been associated with high complication watchmaking, particularly calendars, chronographs, and astronomical displays.
The Grosse Pièce now becomes part of the AP Heritage Collection (the manufacture’s historical archive). The collection exists to preserve and study important timepieces, movements, and documents that define the brand’s history. Watches in the Heritage Collection are not commercial assets, but reference pieces used for research, exhibitions, and education.
With this return, Audemars Piguet is not introducing a new product, but reinforcing its historical foundations. The Grosse Pièce stands as a reminder that the brand’s modern success is built on centuries of complex, bespoke watchmaking.
Citation:
Audemars Piguet, X (formerly Twitter), December 9, 2025
https://x.com/AudemarsPiguet/status/1998432464159584361