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What is a Tourbillon? History of Tourbillon and Modern Watches
Owning a tourbillon is like owning a piece of mechanical art. It not only measures time, but also shows passion, status and respect for watchmaking heritage. For many collectors, the tourbillon is the “passport” to enter the upper world of haute horlogerie.
For many watch collectors, owning their first tourbillon is like a “holy grail” – a rite of passage into the elite ranks of watch collectors. But if you’re new to the hobby, you’re probably wondering: “What is it about tourbillons that makes them so desirable, yet so expensive that they’re out of reach?”
The short answer to this is to make it easier for you to understand: “Today, the tourbillon is no longer a technical necessity, but rather a symbol of the pinnacle of traditional watchmaking art.”
The first tourbillons and early innovations
The inventor of the tourbillon is certainly a familiar name to watch lovers: Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747–1823). He was Swiss by birth but worked as a watchmaker in Paris, and is considered one of the most influential figures in the history of watchmaking. Among his numerous inventions are: the first automatic movement, the first repeater using gongs, one of the earliest constant-force escapements, and most notably the invention he patented in 1801 – the famous tourbillon mechanism.
Today, the tourbillon is often considered a complication, like a chronograph or calendar. But its original purpose was purely practical: to offset the adverse effects of gravity on a pocket watch’s movement, thereby improving its long-term accuracy.
In Breguet’s time, watches were not worn on the wrist but were kept in a waistcoat, often standing upright and almost motionless for hours at a time. This left the internal components, especially the balance wheel and escapement – which were responsible for regulating the beat and transmitting power – vulnerable to gravity.
Breguet, who was trained in physics and mathematics in addition to watchmaking, came up with an extremely elegant solution: he placed the parts susceptible to gravity in a mobile cage that rotated 360 degrees around its axis once a minute. This continuous movement greatly reduced the effects of gravity. He called his invention the tourbillon escapement, inspired by the constant rotation of the rotating cage.
During his illustrious career, Breguet created around 40 tourbillon watches. His clients were none other than European royalty and nobility.
Breguet’s patent for the tourbillon lasted only 10 years, giving subsequent masters the freedom to build on the groundbreaking design. Constant Girard (one of the founders of today’s Girard-Perregaux) was one of the first to see the tourbillon not only as a tool to improve accuracy, but also as a detail that added aesthetic value to the watch. In 1867, he introduced a pocket watch with a tourbillon mounted on three gold bridges, a design that still influences Girard-Perregaux tourbillons today.
In 1920, at the German Watchmaking School in Glashütte, watchmaker and lecturer Alfred Helwig and his students realized the idea of a flying tourbillon. Helwig’s invention eliminated the two bridges that supported the tourbillon cage used by Breguet, Girard, and others, and replaced it with a cantilevered bridge on the underside. This design allowed for a clearer view of the escapement and created a superior level of sophistication. The flying tourbillon subsequently became an attractive option, favored by many modern watchmakers who wanted to demonstrate their ambition and high level of craftsmanship.
Tourbillon on wristwatch
At the same time that Alfred Helwig and his students were developing the flying tourbillon, pocket watches were giving way to watch. Perhaps it is no coincidence that from then on, watches equipped with tourbillons began to gradually disappear. The reason is quite obvious: watches worn on the wrist are constantly changing position, no longer subject to the severe influence of gravity like pocket watches hanging on a chain; therefore, a complex and expensive mechanism like a tourbillon is considered by many to be redundant.
For much of the 20th century, wristwatches with tourbillons remained extremely rare, despite having appeared since the 1940s in major brands such as Patek Philippe and Omega. It wasn’t until 1986, in the midst of the quartz crisis, that the world saw the first mass-produced wristwatch with tourbillons: the Audemars Piguet Ref. 25643, equipped with the record-breaking Caliber 2870. Not only was it the first automatic tourbillon watch, but it also impressed with its ultra-thin tourbillon cage (just 7.2 mm) and the use of titanium, a metal still very new to watchmaking at the time.
Two years later, Breguet, the brand founded by the “father” of the tourbillon, introduced the Caliber 387 movement with a tourbillon, housed in a gold case. This design created a classic formula for generations to come: an off-centered hour-minute display at 12 o’clock, and a tourbillon cage at 6 o’clock on the dial, which also acted as a running seconds hand.
When the “renaissance” of luxury mechanical watches exploded in the early 21st century, after decades of being overshadowed by quartz watches, the tourbillon made a strong comeback. And Breguet remained a pioneer in the field that its name had created.
As tourbillon watches become the “dream” of collectors, the appearance of watches with more than one tourbillon, or combining tourbillon with other complex mechanisms, is almost inevitable.
In 2004, Robert Greubel (France) and Stephen Forsey (UK) collaborated to found the independent watch brand Greubel Forsey in Switzerland, and it caused a stir right from its debut. The Greubel Forsey Double Tourbillon 30º is an unprecedented masterpiece: not just one, but two tourbillon cages, rotating at two different speeds on two separate axes, in which the inner cage is tilted relative to the outer cage.
This unique timepiece put Greubel Forsey on the map of haute horology, and the brand has continued to assert itself with even more daring creations like the Tourbillon 24 Secondes or the Quadruple Tourbillon à Différentiel. As the name suggests, the Quadruple features four tourbillon cages, linked together by a differential to distribute power evenly – a rare feat of engineering.
In parallel, Roger Dubuis, a brand founded by another contemporary master, has also made its mark since 2005 with its skeleton Double Flying Tourbillon movements. The first Excalibur Skeleton Double Flying Tourbillon model has become an icon, opening the brand’s signature style.
The “ultra-thin” trend in the world of complicated watches has been booming for a long time, and tourbillon watches are no exception. Over the years, the title of “world’s thinnest tourbillon wristwatch” has changed hands between manufacturers such as Piaget, Arnold & Son, and even Breguet.
By 2018, Italian jeweler and watchmaker Bulgari had “bragging rights” when setting a world record with the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Automatic model – only 3.95mm thin, with an automatic movement and tourbillon less than 2mm thin. This brand is also famous for a series of “world’s thinnest” records in many other watch segments.
The race for the “thinnest” tourbillon crown continues, and in 2025, Piaget once again won the title with the Altiplano Ultimate Tourbillon. This watch is almost “unbelievable”: integrating a flying tourbillon into a case made of PVD-coated cobalt only 2mm thick. The tourbillon cage itself is crafted from ultra-light titanium, and the entire watch is as thin as a coin.
Of course, these are not the only innovations. Over the past decade, many brands have continued to push the boundaries of watchmaking, creating incredible tourbillons. Here are 10 of the most impressive!
