The brand unites real and virtual watches in its Astronomia Metaverso collection.
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and cryptocurrencies are trending topics among future-orientated watchmakers. Brands which have already experimented with them are Hublot, Konstantin Chaykin, Bulova, IWC. Now it's time for the king of bling, Jacob & Co.
The brand has united physical and digital watches in one collection called Astronomia Metaverso. It was created in collaboration with UNXD, a NFT marketplace for luxury and culture. The project consists of eight NFTs, five of which are accompanied by wearable pieces while the rest are digital-only designs.
Why eight? The answer is hidden in plain sight: that's how many planets are in our Solar System. It's interesting that the planets chosen for the physical watches are the ones closest to the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars and Jupiter. However, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are exclusively available as digital assets with signed sketches.
The five "real-world" models are released as unique pieces accompanied by NFTs. The collection is even marketed as the debut NFT collection by Jacob & Co., and it seems the physical watches should now merely be viewed as complementary add-ons to their digital designs.
Jacob Arabo personally worked on the design of each piece and has tried to convey the individuality of each and every planet by combining a variety of precious metals and stones.
Take the watch dedicated to Jupiter as an example, where the watchmaker has represented the spectrum of shades in the planet's famous clouds and recreated the Great Red Spot. The model named after Venus is decorated with patterns that bear resemblance to the planetary lightning in its atmosphere.
The dial displays an off-center subdial for the hours and minutes, a tourbillon at 12 o'clock, and a large signature Jacob-cut gemstone rotating in 60 seconds. However, the full technical specs have yet to be revealed — they've been set aside until the sale.
The five physical watches (and their NFTs) will be sold at auction this spring, while Saturn, Uranus and Neptune will be sold as a single digital set at fixed prices.