Two hands for the time, two hands for the chrono, two tourbillons, two pushers, two variants, two partners: the “Jean Bugatti” from Jacob & Co. is all about duets!
Do we have to keep reinventing the chronograph to make it “new”? No, answers Jacob & Co. Because when developing its “Jean Bugatti” model, the brand used many existing processes. On the other hand, their connection is unique and particularly elegant.
First observation: the piece, which like so many others is inspired by the automotive world, does not aspire to the spirit of racing, modernity or the 1960s, as the trend sometimes suggests. Through the partnership with the Bugatti company signed in 2019, the company gains access to the stylistic heritage of the important manufacturer founded in 1909. Needless to recall Bugatti's aesthetic masterpieces: Type 41 Royal, Type 50 or Type 57SC Atlantic. the most expensive collector's car in the world, of which Ralph Lauren owns one example. For Jacob & Co., the inspiration lies clearly in the retro/roaring twenties style, which only a few chronographs can boast of.
Then you don't have to be an expert to understand that reading the hours and minutes is very irrelevant here. Jacob & Co. dedicates two very shortened “hands” to the watch, which point to a curved flange with Arabic numerals at 12. We quickly suspect that the main thing lies somewhere else…
The essential thing about it are the two central hands that belong to the chronograph. They are connected to a third, discreet display at 6 o'clock. The chronograph displays can be read as follows: The large hand shows the seconds unit; the little one, her ten; The window at 6 o'clock counts the elapsed minutes from 0 to 30.
An atypical dashboard
The layout is not common, nor are the units of measurement. Very few chronographs have a separate hand for the tens of seconds and another for the units. The type of display is also not a combination of retrograde hands and digital display counter with discs.
However, reading is intuitive and natural. We can guess Jacob & Co.'s intention to favor short times. The spectacle of the retrograde hands is very beautiful and unusual – especially for the large hand, which moves about 200° in 10 seconds, a segment and presence that we are not used to seeing.
Jean Bugatti Twin Tourbillon and Chronograph © Jacob & Co.
Double whammy
But the Jean Bugatti has other advantages. At 5 and 7 o'clock we discover two openings closed by smoked sapphire crystals. Two tourbillons slide inside, the upper deck of which reflects the initials of the founding father Ettore Bugatti, father of Jean Bugatti, his only son. The double tourbillon is an aesthetic and technical hallmark found in several Jacob & Co creations.
The idea is clearly to combine horological excellence, precision and the neo-retro spirit of a grille. We also note that each escapement is clocked at its own frequency: 3 Hz for the part assigned to the time part and 5 Hz for the part assigned to the chronograph. A clever idea, certainly not new, but it allows to offer a certain precision to the second hand while ensuring a good power reserve (two days) to the first.
The piece was released in 2022 in two series limited to 57 pieces, notably in rose gold with a cream dial.
Jacob & Co. Jean Bugatti Twin Tourbillon & Chronograph
HOUSING: Rose gold, sapphire crystal and back, water resistant to 30 m
DIMENSIONS : 46mm
MOVEMENT: mechanical with hand-winding, Jacob&Co caliber JCFM09, column wheel chronograph, 470 components, 92 jewels, two one-minute tourbillons, 5 Hz for the chronograph, 3 Hz for the hour and minute display
FUNCTIONS : peripheral hour and minute display, bi-retrograde chronograph with separate ten-second units, digital counter from 30 minutes to 6 o'clock
CHOOSE: painted cream color
BRACELET: Alligator leather, rose gold folding clasp
LIMITED EDITION: 57 copies
INTRODUCTION YEAR: 2022
This year, GMT Magazine and WorldTempus began the ambitious project of collecting the chronograph since 2000 in “The Millennium Watch Book – Chronographs”, a large and beautiful, beautifully illustrated book. This article is an excerpt. The Millennium Watch Book – Chronographs is available here in French and English.