Minerva Exo Tourbillon Limited Edition 18: Price, Specs, History

Olive green, yellow gold and a balance wheel that seems to hover in mid-air. Minerva, the Villeret watchmaker that this year stepped out from under the Montblanc name, has unveiled an Exo Tourbillon in a limited edition of just 18 pieces, one of the most complete statements yet of its new, independent identity.

What is the Minerva Exo Tourbillon Limited Edition 18?

It is a hand-wound tourbillon watch built around Minerva’s patented Exo Tourbillon architecture, presented in a yellow gold case with a dial in deep olive-green guilloché. According to Monochrome Watches, which published details on September 25, the hours and minutes are read on a black onyx sub-dial placed off-centre at twelve o’clock, with 18k yellow gold hands and Roman numerals. The lower half of the dial belongs to the tourbillon, left open so that the mechanism becomes the main event.

The pairing of olive green and yellow gold is warm and quietly classical, closer to a gentleman’s library than to the cool greys that often dress high complications. The onyx adds a precise, graphic counterpoint to the engraved texture around it.

How does the Exo Tourbillon work?

A classic tourbillon places the balance wheel, the watch’s oscillating heart, inside a small rotating cage together with the escapement. The cage turns continuously to average out the effect of gravity on timekeeping. The cost is size: the balance must be small enough to fit within the cage, and a smaller balance generally stores less energy.

Minerva’s answer is to take the balance out of the cage. In the Exo Tourbillon, the balance sits above the rotating carriage rather than inside it, which allows a much larger wheel. Monochrome reports a 14.5 mm screw balance, with its staff held to tolerances of five microns, and notes that the carriage completes one revolution every 60 seconds, doubling as the seconds indicator. The calibre M16.68 beats at a traditional 18,000 vibrations per hour, a rhythm that suits a large, slow balance and gives a graceful motion to the eye.

The result is a tourbillon that looks unusually open. Seen on the wrist, the balance appears to float over the turning cage beneath it, a small piece of theatre that is also sound engineering.

A short history of Minerva and the tourbillon

The tourbillon itself dates to 1801, when Abraham-Louis Breguet patented his rotating carriage in Paris to improve the accuracy of pocket watches worn upright. Minerva’s story began a few decades later. The manufacture was founded in 1858 in Villeret, in the Swiss Jura, and over the twentieth century became known above all as a specialist in chronographs and timing instruments, a lineage collectors still prize.

In 2006 the Richemont group acquired Minerva, and for two decades its Villeret workshop produced Montblanc’s most traditional high watchmaking, as Europa Star recounts. The Exo Tourbillon was introduced in 2010 after three years of development, according to Monochrome, and has been a signature of the manufacture ever since.

In April 2026, Minerva re-emerged as a stand-alone name, with no Montblanc signature on its dials, as Monochrome reported at the time. Laurent Lecamp, who leads watchmaking for the maison, described the arrangement to Europa Star as “Minerva at its Villeret manufacture and Montblanc in Le Locle—two entities within the same maison, each with its own legitimacy and identity.” The new Exo Tourbillon is among the first complications to carry that renewed signature.

Freed from its cage, the balance floats above the tourbillon: a Villeret idea, now signed Minerva alone.

How much does the Minerva Exo Tourbillon cost?

Monochrome lists the Limited Edition 18 at €160,000. A US dollar price was not published in the sources we reviewed, and final pricing will depend on market and taxes, so confirm with the brand. For context, Minerva’s April collection ranged from €39,000 for the Unveiled Crownless to €84,000 for a yellow gold chronograph limited to 30 pieces, per Monochrome, which places this tourbillon at the summit of the house’s current offer.

In our view, the watch’s appeal lies in its combination of rarity and substance. Eighteen pieces is a very small run even by high-watchmaking standards, and the Exo Tourbillon is a genuine construction of the house rather than a decorative variation. At 44.8 mm and just over 15 mm thick it is a substantial watch, and buyers who prefer smaller cases may want to try one on first. For other tourbillons we have followed this season, see the Grönefeld 1941 Quadrivium and the Girard-Perregaux Laureato Fifty Tourbillon.

For the Collector

• Price: €160,000, as reported at launch; confirm current and local pricing with the brand.
• Availability: 18 pieces only. Minerva operates within the Montblanc maison, so boutiques and the Montblanc website are the natural first points of contact for allocation.
• What drives value: a very small edition, a patented in-house tourbillon construction, a solid gold case and the Minerva name, now signed alone after twenty years.
• What to watch for: the 44.8 mm by 15.03 mm case wears large; the movement is hand-wound, so it asks for a daily turn of the crown.
• Resale: no secondary-market record exists yet for this edition. Past auction prices for Minerva and Montblanc Villeret pieces vary widely, and past prices do not predict future value.

Frequently asked questions

How much is the Minerva Exo Tourbillon Limited Edition 18?

It is priced at €160,000, according to Monochrome Watches. Confirm local pricing with the brand.

How many will be made?

Only 18 pieces, all in 18k yellow gold with an olive-green guilloché dial.

What is an Exo Tourbillon?

It is Minerva’s patented tourbillon in which the balance wheel sits above the rotating cage instead of inside it. This allows a larger balance, here 14.5 mm across.

Is Minerva still part of Montblanc?

Minerva became a stand-alone name in 2026 but remains within the Montblanc maison and the Richemont group. Its watches are made in Villeret, Montblanc’s in Le Locle.

Sources: Monochrome Watches · Monochrome Watches, Minerva 2026 collection · Europa Star