When the Astronomia Tourbillon was introduced in 2014, the re-invention of the tourbillon in a vertical orientation and the constant turning of its four satellites garnered most of the attention.

What led to the development of the Astronomia Art Collection, however, is the incredible sapphire crystal and precious metal case, which puts everything on display.

So, the idea was to develop special works of art to put inside the Astronomia Tourbillon, using its massive sapphire crystal case as a gallery, while still showcasing the incredible Astronomia tourbillon movement. The brand started with dragons, octopi, spiders, horses and more. Incredibly successful, Jacob & Co. has expanded the Astronomia Tourbillon Art Collection every year since.

For the Astronomia Baguette Dragon White Gold, the base of the 18K White Gold case is covered with baguette diamonds and a 3D hand-engraved 24K gold dragon with ruby eyes is carefully placed within the four arms of the Astronomia movement.

The mythical dragon is a magnificent creature, representing strength and power, glory and good fortune. The creation of the 24K dragon combines high technology with Old World artisan skills.

The Jacob & Co. artisan who crafts the dragon first uses Computer-Aided-Design (CAD) to detail the dragon and plan its placement inside the watch. From this rendering, the 18K gold cast is made. This process alone takes more than two months. Then another three months is spent by the artisan to hand-sculpt the details of the dragon. Every surface is carved, engraved, and polished.

Finally, the movement is assembled around the sculpture, with care taken to make sure it doesn't obstruct the perfect functioning of the watch.

The tourbillon is widely considered the ultimate complication, as it turns and spins to counter the effects of gravity on the precision of the movement. For the Astronomia Collection, Jacob & Co. has taken the tourbillon one step farther, introducing additional axes in which the tourbillon turns.

For the Astronomia Art Dragon, the tourbillon is double-axis - turning in two axes: one in 60 seconds and the second in 2.5 minutes.

Customization and bespoke work has been the foundation of Jacob & Co. since the beginning and continues to this day. The brand has created a number of Astronomia Art pieces - Dragons, Spiders, Octopi, Horses, Tigers, world cities and more. Visit any Jacob & Co. point of sale or contact the brand directly to inquire.

The Astronomia Art Collection has become an icon within the brand and collectors look to Jacob & Co. to see what's coming next. The Astronomia Art is a showcase of Jacob & Co.'s commitment to using traditional métiers d'art in a modern way.

Jacob & Co. has been on the forefront of using precious stones since its founding in 1986, and has developed a number of special cuts and setting techniques. For the Astronomia Tourbillon, the brand developed the 288-facet Jacob-cut diamond. This special cut can be accomplished by only a select few gem cutters, and the rough stone typically starts out double the size of the finished diamond. The facets have to be incredibly precise so the diamond is perfectly symmetrical and round. In the Astronomia Art, the one carat Jacob-cut diamond rotates on itself in 30 seconds.

The globe is made of magnesium to ensure consistency in weight, as all four satellites have to weight exactly the same. The globe rotates every 30 seconds.

The Astronomia Baguette Dragon 18K White Gold case measures 50 millimeters in diameter and 25 millimeters in thickness between the highest point of its specially curved front sapphire crystal and the lowest point of its case. The case features four sapphire crystal windows installed throughout the periphery, allowing for unhindered viewing of the caliber and the artwork inside. The base of the case is paved with 202 invisibly set baguette white diamonds (about 8.32 carats). The lugs are covered with 100 invisibly set baguette white diamonds (about 10.20 carats).

The skeletonized titanium hours and minutes dial is hand angled and polished with lacquered Roman numerals as indexes. The blued metallic hands are designed by Jacob&Co.

3-D 24K hand-engraved gold dragon in the case

Iconic gravitational double-axis tourbillon

288-facet Jacob-cut diamond makes a complete rotation every 30 seconds

Magnesium globe makes a complete rotation every 30 seconds

Domed and curved, anti-reflective sapphire crystal

The base of the case paved with 202 invisibly set baguette white diamonds