Jacob & Co. Opera
The JACOB & CO. OPERA Musical Watch proudly houses two traditional Swiss crafts: a mechanical music box basting two cylinders and combs, and an exclusive Jacob & Co. JCFM02 manual-winding caliber.
In this new complication, the two cylinders and combs are mounted on the movement and rotate around the dial each time they play their melody. This works together with a triple-axis tourbillon and the subsidiary hour and minute dial.
The making of music boxes has been a traditional Swiss craft for hundreds of years. In the Opera Musical Watch, Jacob & Co. has combined this artisanal work with high watchmaking for the very first time, incorporating two cylinders and combs. The watch is able to play a 120-note melody never-before-heard in a musical watch.
Using a sophisticated one-piece sapphire crystal that encircles the whole timepiece, the mechanics of the Opera are put on display for all to see and allows the movement to deliver the purest sound.
A central flywheel drives the two cylinders, which is a real challenge for the movement due to the weight of the cylinders. A pusher located at two o’clock activates the rotation of the entire movement and simultaneously plays the 120-note melody. Each note is played as the tiny pins on the cylinder make contact with the individual teeth of the comb. As the cylinders turn to play the melody the entire assembly on which they are fixed, including the triple axis tourbillon and the hour and minute dial, rotates 120 degrees around the dial. The tourbillon rotates around its inner cage once in 40 seconds while its intermediates cage rotates in three minutes and its outer cage in eight minutes.
Finally, in order to display the time with 12 o’clock always in its correct position, a patented differential gear system is used; both the dial and the hands have to turn counter-clockwise. The manually wound caliber JCFM02 has been developed specifically for this complication, using titanium components for excellent sound propagation. The movement, which comprises 650 components, fits into a diameter of just 43mm. A pusher based at two o’clock on the middle of the case triggers the melody and thus the rotation of the movement. Regardless of whether or not the melody is playing, the triple axis tourbillon dances its round-the-clock mechanical ballet.
The Jacob & Co. Opera Musical Watch comes in two different versions: one 18-piece limited edition that is minimalist in its presentation with black and gold high end finishes showing the mechanical workings. The other is a unique version, which allows decorations on the cylinders. These decorations depict a romantic gala night with an orchestra.
Technical details
Movement
Caliber: Exclusive Jacob & Co. manual-winding JCFM02
Diameter: 43mm;
Height: 17.2mm (maximum height at center of movement);
Material: Steel, brass, platinum and titanium
Components: 646
Power Reserve: 72-Hours;
Frequency: 21’600 vib/h (3 Hz);
Jewels: 52
System: Triple Axis Tourbillon with Carillon
Finishing: Bridges and plates: Black PVD fnish; Barrels: Circular graining; Cylinders: rose gold plated; Pin-barrel
Functions
Subsidiary hour and minute dial;
Triple-axis gravitational tourbillon cage rotating about
• Its own axis once in 40 seconds,
• Its second axis every 3 minutes
• Its third axis every 8 minute.
Music upon demand with musical melody activated by pusher at 2 o’clock by means of two rotating cylinders. 120° movement rotation in 20 seconds
Case
Diameter: 47mm;
Thickness: 20mm;
Material: Titanium Black PVD and Sapphire;
Case Back: Black PVD and Rose gold 18K;
Bows: Winding and Time-Setting via two Bows in the Case Back;
Crystal: Unique Domed Sapphire with Double Anti-Reflective Treatment;
Water resistance: 3 atm
Dial & Hands
Dial: 18K Rose gold
Hands: Finished Blue
Strap & Clasp
Strap: Black Alligator Leather
Clasp: Folding Clasp
Limited Edition
18 pieces
