Arushi SakhujaÂ
During the most coveted watch show in the world, Watches and Wonders 2023 in Geneva, Jacob & Co. unveiled a one-of-its-kind timeless watch. Blending the functionality of a watch with the elegance of jewellery, the Billionaire Timeless Treasure is encrusted with 425 ultra-rare yellow diamonds. Priced at a jaw-dropping $20 million, it is one of the rarest watches deserving of its name.
The iconic timepiece that glistens with diamonds, has not just caught every attention due to its detailing rather, also due to the slow and painstaking process of sourcing rare yellow diamonds, cutting them, and setting them within an intricate gold bracelet. It also has an engineering skeletonized tourbillon making the watch is amongst one of the most exclusive timepieces in history.
And leave it to Swiss maker Jacob & Co. for creating an extravagant timepiece. The Billionaire Timeless Treasure timepiece has been in the works for three and a half years, with much of that time dedicated just to finding enough yellow diamonds of the same colour and quality to decorate the bracelet, bezel, dial, and crown of the watch. Jacob & Co. claims that it nearly emptied the world’s existing supply of these ultra-rare stones.
Each of the 425 Asscher-cut yellow diamonds were sourced, matched, cut, and set to form the structure of the watch. A total of 10 gemologists took 880 carats of rough precious stone and ended up with 216.89 carats after each stone was finally cut. Seraina Wicht, head of gemology at Jacob & Co, comments, “For the Billionaire Timeless Treasure, we were receiving stones one by one, two by two, three at the most. It happened several times that we spent several weeks without receiving a single one that was worthy of the piece.” On top of the 425 Asscher-cut stones, on the case and bracelet, an additional 76 emerald-cut tsavorites frame the movement which is made up of another 57 baguette-cut yellow diamonds.
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With 216.89 carats of diamonds, the watch is a museum-worthy masterpiece that embodies exclusivity, opulence, and diamond quality. The gems were cut with high complexity to create a kaleidoscope effect, and the yellow gold case was crafted to measure, link by link, prong by prong, and fine-tuned for the perfect fit.
The Billionaire Timeless Treasure is beautifully accented with a vivid green frame of tsavorite gemstones. 76 of them have been selected, emerald-cut and kite-cut, to surround calibre JCAM39. The skeleton movement Jacob & Co. uses in all its Billionaires is regulated by a tourbillon so thin, so fine it might go unnoticed at first sight. The nature of all Billionaires is to combine the demands of high jewellery with those of high watchmaking. This is why the extremely fine skeleton is enhanced with 57 baguette-cut yellow diamonds.
Perhaps the coolest detail of the watch is its back. If flip it over to view the movement through the sapphire caseback, you’ll notice that the word billionaire is engraved with a smiley face in the letter o. The watch is also available in white diamonds which have been produced in understandably limited quantities since 2014.
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