Tourbillon
- Date
- 1801 · confidence high
- Place
- Paris, France
- Credited to
- Abraham-Louis Breguet (from an idea by John Arnold)
- Field
- Knowledge & symbols
What it is
A watchmaking mechanism that mounts the escapement and balance wheel in a rotating cage to cancel out gravity's effect on accuracy, patented by Breguet in 1801.
Conceived by British watchmaker John Arnold and developed and patented by his friend Breguet on 26 June 1801.
What it led to
- High-precision pocket watches
- Prestige chronometers
- The tourbillon as a visible decorative feature in luxury watchmaking
Built on
- Anchor escapement