Jacob & Co. Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater Returns To Its First Note

Jacob & Co. Palatial Flying Tourbillon returns to its first note in 2026, twelve years after the Maison introduced its first minute repeater. The new edition revisits the watch that began Jacob & Co.’s journey into mechanical sound, now with a new movement and a redesigned tourbillon.

In 2014, Jacob & Co. entered the world of mechanical sound with the Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater. It was the Maison’s first watch designed not only to be seen, but also to be heard, combining a minute repeater with a flying tourbillon inside a comparatively elegant round case.

For Jacob & Co., that watch marked the beginning of a broader exploration of sound in mechanical watchmaking. Over the following years, the Maison developed increasingly elaborate chiming and musical watches, eventually combining minute repeaters, tourbillons and mechanical music boxes. Now, as Jacob & Co. celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2026, the story returns to where it began.

The new Jacob & Co. Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater is presented in 18K rose gold with a red mineral dial and is limited to just 12 pieces. The number is deliberate: one piece for each year since the original model was introduced.

Twelve Years Of Mechanical Sound

The original Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater opened a new chapter for Jacob & Co. The watch paired one of traditional watchmaking’s most demanding complications with a flying tourbillon, creating a timepiece whose mechanical character could be experienced through both sight and sound. The original model eventually sold out completely.

From that starting point, Jacob & Co.’s work with sound developed along two distinct paths.

Minute repeaters became increasingly sophisticated, with watches such as the Twin Turbo Furious introducing a decimal minute repeater alongside twin triple-axis tourbillons, while the Astronomia Maestro adopted a carillon system with three hammers and three gongs.

The Maison also explored mechanical music. The Opera, introduced in 2017, combined a triple-axis tourbillon with a two-cylinder, two-comb Swiss music box. This was followed by the Opera Godfather in 2019, and later the Opera Godfather Minute Repeater, which brought a minute repeater and mechanical music box together in the same watch.

That evolution ultimately led to increasingly complex musical mechanisms, including The Godfather II in 2026, which places two melodies onto a single music-box cylinder.

The new Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater therefore represents more than a revival. It brings Jacob & Co.’s exploration of sound back to its starting point while introducing a new generation of the original movement.

A New Movement For The Original Idea

At the heart of the new watch is the manually wound Calibre JCCM04, which succeeds the original JCBM03. Jacob & Co. has revised its manufacturing and assembly, while also redesigning the flying tourbillon cage and introducing a silent centrifugal governor for the minute repeater.

The two complications remain the defining mechanical elements of the watch. The minute repeater is activated through a slide integrated into the caseband. When the mechanism is armed and released, the watch strikes the current time using a traditional sequence.

A low note indicates each hour, alternating high and low notes mark the quarters, and a high note represents each remaining minute. A system of stepped cams, or snails, encodes the time, while racks interpret their positions and determine how many strikes are required.

The sound itself comes from two hammers striking two cathedral gongs. These gongs are longer than conventional examples and extend around the movement, helping to increase resonance and create a richer, longer sound.

Their production is highly manual. The gongs are formed, hardened, tuned and fitted by hand, with their final adjustment carried out by ear. This is particularly important in a minute repeater, where the quality and character of the sound are as important as the precision of the mechanism producing it.

A Silent Governor For A Cleaner Chime

One of the technical changes introduced with the JCCM04 is the new centrifugal governor.

A governor regulates the cadence of the striking sequence, ensuring that the hammers operate at a controlled rhythm. In the new Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater, Jacob & Co. has engineered the governor to operate silently.

The purpose is straightforward but important: by removing mechanical noise from the governor itself, the sound of the cathedral gongs can become the dominant acoustic element during the striking sequence.

This refinement is particularly appropriate for a watch whose identity is built around sound. Rather than adding another visible complication to the dial, Jacob & Co. has concentrated on improving the way the existing mechanism is experienced.

The Flying Tourbillon At Six

At 6 o’clock, the second major complication remains clearly visible: a flying tourbillon completing one revolution every 60 seconds.

The cage has been redesigned for this new edition, with Jacob & Co. also refining its manufacturing and assembly. Unlike a conventional tourbillon with an upper bridge, the flying construction leaves the cage visually open, giving it a strong presence on the dial.

Both the tourbillon and minute repeater are integrated into the JCCM04, a 30mm movement measuring 6.10mm thick. It contains 308 components and 29 jewels, operates at 3Hz and delivers a substantial 90-hour power reserve.

Through the sapphire crystal caseback, the architecture of the striking mechanism remains visible. The cathedral gongs and hammers can be seen alongside the rest of the movement, creating a visual counterpart to the acoustic experience.

The movement is finished with Côtes de Genève, hand-polished angles and finely drawn edges.

A Dial Inspired By Music

The connection to sound continues into the design of the watch itself.

The red mineral dial provides the strongest visual contrast against the 18K rose-gold case, while applied rose-gold hour markers keep the display relatively restrained. At 9 o’clock, a brushed 18K rose-gold G clef serves as a direct reference to musical notation.

The skeletonized hands take inspiration from another instrument associated with sound: the metronome. Its purpose is to maintain tempo, making it an appropriate visual reference for a watch whose own centrifugal governor controls the rhythm of its chimes.

These details prevent the minute repeater from being treated as a purely technical complication. Sound is present not only in the mechanism, but throughout the visual identity of the watch.

Twelve Pieces For Twelve Years

The new Jacob & Co. Palatial Flying Tourbillon is housed in a 43mm 18K rose-gold case measuring 12.3mm thick. It features a sapphire crystal, 30-metre water resistance and an alligator strap secured by an 18K rose-gold pin buckle.

The Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater is limited to 12 pieces and carries a retail price of USD 390,000.

The limited edition directly reflects the history of the model: twelve watches for the twelve years separating the original 2014 Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater from this new interpretation.

For a brand that has spent more than a decade exploring mechanical sound through increasingly ambitious creations, the return to the original minute repeater is therefore fitting. The new Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater does not attempt to replicate the 2014 watch exactly. Instead, it takes the original concept and gives it a new movement, a redesigned tourbillon cage and a quieter governor — bringing the first note of Jacob & Co.’s acoustic journey into its next chapter.

Technical Specifications

For more information, please visit the official Jacob & Co. website.

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