The Weeknd’s newest timepiece is sure to make Marvel fans drool.
Earlier this week, the Grammy-winning artist took to Instagram to show off his Audemars Piguet Black Panther watch, a limited edition collaborative piece that runs about $162,000. The Weeknd provided close-up shots of the design—the Royal Oak Concept Black Panther Flying Tourbillon—as well as a photo of its next-level packaging. However, it’s unclear if the artist purchased the piece for himself or if it was some kind of “thank-you” gift for his contribution to the Black Panther soundtrack.
The head-turning watch was unveiled back in March and marked the official kickoff of Audemars Piguet’s collaboration with Marvel. The Black Panther piece, which is the first in a series of co-branded AP x Marvel watches, was released in limited quantities of 250. The two-tone design (black and purple) features a 42mm sandblasted titanium case with glare-proofed sapphire crystal and caseback, as well as a black ceramic bezel and crown. However, the highlight of the design is the hand-painted Black Panther character on the white gold dial.
“There was no way we’d have just printed the character on the dial,” AP CEO François-Henry Bennahmias told Prestige. “We wanted to show the craftsmanship, the finishes, everything that Audemars Piguet does, while respecting the integrity of the character … You’re talking about a monster brand called Marvel and a very high-end exclusive brand called Audemars Piguet … We signed our lives in blood because they were going to share their launches for the next five years.”
In celebration of its Marvel partnership, AP also created a one-off version of the Black Panther watch that was auctioned off for $5.2 million, which, according to GQ, marked an all-time record for an AP watch sold at auction. The proceeds were donated to the non-profit organizations First Book and Ashoka.
