Astronomia is the embodiment of 21st-century ultra-high-end watchmaking and a globally recognized symbol of Jacob & Co. watchmaking expertise. A world-first both in the boldness of its unprecedented concept and its mechanical construction, Astronomia has gone beyond impressive horological achievements to becoming an outstanding multidisciplinary engineering accomplishment.

For the second time within the same year, Astronomia undergoes more than just an evolution or an increase in performance. Just after Astronomia Revolution achieved the record-breaking speed of a whole movement making one revolution every 60 seconds, Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension breaks the triple-axis tourbillon barrier : this unique piece is the first ever four-axis tourbillon.

Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension is the result of two profound partnerships of Jacob & Co.. One is a longstanding commitment to participate and provide its most advanced and exceptional timepieces to Only Watch. This unique piece has been donated to watchmaking's leading charity. Only Watch was created in 2005 to raise funds for research on Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy by auctioning one-off timepieces. Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension will be sold at auction by Christie's in Geneva on November 5^th, 2023.

Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension is the brainchild of Jacob & Co. and Concepto Watch Factory's founder, master watchmaker and CEO Valérien Jaquet. "For almost 20 years, I and the Concepto Watch Factory team have enjoyed a deep and intense partnership with the Jacob & Co. label and with Jacob Arabo himself, says Valérien Jaquet. As tourbillon specialists, we are very proud to co-sign with Jacob & Co. this world premiere in aid of research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy."

"From the beginning of the Astronomia collection, I've wanted it to spin as fast as possible, and then we reached one minute with Astronomia Revolution, says Jacob Arabo, Founder and Chairman of Jacob & Co. I wanted it to be an extraordinary tourbillon, and then we reached four axes. This is the first time a timepiece breaks the triple-axis tourbillon barrier. Together, Jacob & Co. and Concepto Watch Factory decided this level of ingenuity and expertise had to be bestowed upon such an unanimously recognized charity as Only Watch."

In previous Astronomia iterations, the tourbillon has been twin-axis or single-axis, with a third axis sometimes provided by the entire platform's rotation. And they've always been flying tourbillons, which means they have no upper bridge. Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension breaks the fourth dimension barrier where watchmakers have been stuck for years.

Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension is the first Astronomia with a two-arm carousel. It spins to the tune of one rotation every 60 seconds. It is the tourbillon's first rotation axis.

At the end of the first arm lies a flying triple-axis tourbillon. Flying because the tourbillon carriage is held by one end only, a lateral one. Triple-axis because the escapement is put into rotation by three sets of gears. The first one spins in 60 seconds, the second one in 18 seconds and the last one in 15 seconds. This is not just a high number of axes, but very high speeds as well.

As the entire movement travels fast and clockwise, and as the tourbillon carriage goes along, Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension's balance wheel is fighting against gravity with the help of the first quadruple axis tourbillon ever achieved.

The dial of Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension is a piece of art, the likes of which are generally found in cathedrals. Except this one is made of gems. There are 35 in total, belonging to 7 different types, each providing a different color. The hessonite garnets are orange. The citrines are yellow. The sapphires are blue. The tsavorites are green. The rhodolite garnets are purple. The topaz are light blue and the pyrope garnets are red.

Each gem is cut in bespoke shape, not belonging to any of the classic cuts. They're not laid out like gems usually are, with their table facing up and their culet facing down. Jacob & Co. decided on the opposite, creating a geometrical field, an uneven landscape of crystal and light.

A pioneer in the use of colored gemstones as far back as the 1980's, Jacob &Co. applied his taste for red, blue, orange, yellow and green to a great many timepieces. Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension's chromatic field is in fact a Jacob & Co. signature in renewed form.

Since its creation, Astronomia has been traveling through technicality, space and time, fueled by Jacob & Co.'s sense of creativity and unencumbered by any limitations. Astronomia started at one revolution every 20 minutes. Then Astronomia Solar cut it down to 10. Yet another innovation took that to 5 minutes. Astronomia Revolution broke all records with 1 minute per rotation. Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension maintains that speed and adds the exceptional feature of a four-axis tourbillon.

Orbiting at the speed of one full rotation per minute requires massive energy. In order to control the powerful flow running through caliber JCAM54, Jacob & Co. has devised a next generation constant force device. Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension features a whip-based torque regulation system of exceptional frequency, for which a patent is being applied.

Every 1/6th of a second, the same frequency as the balance wheel's, the gear train activates a hairspring. It then frees the whip, a star-shaped gear located nearest the fourth wheel. The whip acts as a buffer between the energy flow from the barrel and the tourbillons, which carry the balance wheel. Each time the whip is activated, it transmits the amount of energy needed by the tourbillon carriage for the next 1/6th of a second. This fine energy regulation allowed Jacob & Co. to maintain an impressive 36-hour power reserve on a massively complex timepiece.

Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension is a highly desirable object that's been designed as thoroughly and lovingly as a spaceship. Its case measure 47 mm in diameter for a total height of 27 mm, a generous heft dictated entirely by the requirements of calibre JCAM54 and its functionalities. Jacob & Co. has taken the main features of the original Astronomia case and finely adjusted them to fit the narrative Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension is spreading through space.

The entire caseband of Astronomia Revolution 4th Dimension is made of a single piece of transparent sapphire. The crystal is one large, domed piece of sapphire crystal. The caseback is full and not just for simplicity's sake. Like on all Astronomias, there is no crown to speak of. Its function is being relegated to the caseback and spread between two lift-up bows, one for winding, the other for time-setting.