This is the dawning of the age of Bitcoin, and this is a watch for the ages. During the 2022 edition of the Geneva Watch Days, Jacob&Co. presents a ground-breaking, high complication timepiece. Housed in a 44 mm, black DLC titanium case, the Astronomia Solar Bitcoin is a symbolic and horological tribute to the world of cryptocurrency.
By installing Bitcoin-related features within its vertical and rotating manufacture movement, Jacob&Co. creates a watch that’s powerfully metaphorical. By inserting a Jacob-cut diamond, a Jacob-cut orange citrine and a rotating Earth, Jacob&Co. adds its own craft as a nod to the success of those who have mastered Bitcoin. Twenty-five of them will have access to the multi-rotational piece, which can be paid for in the cryptocurrency of their choosing.
Jacob&Co. engages an exciting crowd, eager to celebrate the advent of the age of cryptocurrency, with a strongly illustrative timepiece. The black DLC titanium Astronomia Solar Bitcoin is interspersed with details and features that are directly linked to the Bitcoin universe A Bitcoin currency logo. A flying tourbillon. A yellow citrine sun, a diamond moon and a golden Earth. A miniature rocketship to reach for the moon. All these symbols tell the story of the advent of the first cryptocurrency, from abstraction to reality, from outlier to a mainstay of the financial system.
Together, they maintain a natural lineage with the Astronomia Solar collection, but also reminds us that crypto is not an out-of-this-world phenomenon. It’s based in a form of reality. Hence the terrestrial globe made of gold and black lacquer, which stands at the top of the 19.90 mm high calibre. And as Bitcoin keeps reaching for the moon, figuratively, the movement also features a black rocket, complete with flaming reactor and Bitcoin sign. The Astronomia Solar Bitcoin tells the story of the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency adventure by means similar to writings on cave walls or on Egyptian temples. Except that the canvas of this epic tale is also a functional, truly advanced piece of watchmaking, and a gorgeous one at that.
THE EPIC X: A NEW TALE OF DESIGN & HOROLOGY
Introduced to the public during the 2022 edition of the Geneva Watch Days, a new Epic X succeeds the original dashing, skeleton, sporty collection from Jacob & Co. The redesigned Epic X is a sleeker and streamlined take on the seminal timepiece. Details abound where Jacob & Co. has subtly altered a shape, a surface, a line, to make the Epic X entirely up to date. It’s also one of the very few Jacob & Co. timepieces to be manufactured in steel.
The first series of the new Epic X flaunt their bold 44-mm steel case, their 5-link, all-new steel bracelet, their X-shaped lugs and their vertically aligned skeleton movement with Clou de Paris-adorned bridges. A full rose gold version is also being released. They exhibit a new set of crown guards, a new lug design and introduce green, blue or black aluminum components that will lead to infinite possibilities.
Introduced in the spring of 2022, the second generation of Epic X has a big shoes to fill. When launched back in 2015, the original Epic X collection was instrumental in making Jacob & Co. the full-fledged watchmaking brand it is today. Years after the iconic and celebrated Five Time Zone Watch, which had left a mark on an entire era and was worn by countless celebrities, Jacob & Co. had moved to a more horology-oriented timepiece.
A complete work of watchmaking, the epic X was ahead of the trends that went on to define the sporty, high watchmaking, skeleton watch as a hero of the 2020s. It later became the blueprint for the Epic X Chrono and Epix X Tourbillon. The remaining, black-plated surfaces of the openworked mainplate are finished with perlage (circular graining), sandblasting and vertical-graining. A look at the movement’s back reveals the characteristic “Octopus” spring, a refined component with three extremely thin and elegantly curved blades. It acts as a pawl-spring and a setting-lever spring. The level of care put into its design and finishings are a testament to the Epic X haute horlogerie nature.
