JAEGER-LECOULTRE
Jaeger-LeCoultre “La Grande Maison”, based in the Vallée de Joux, was founded in 1833 by Antoine-LeCoultre, inventor and self-taught watchmaker, who dedicated his life to the pursuit of timepiece precision and reliability. His dedication is expressed in the volume of his work; during 30 years, he created over 350 calibres of different sizes of which 99 were with repetitions, and 128 were supplied with chronographs.
The name Jaeger derives from the Parisian Edmond Jaeger, who, in 1903, called on Jacques-David LeCoultre (Antoine’s son) to collaborate in producing the calibres he had invented. The two men’s cooperation and friendship were to give rise to the creation of the Jaeger-LeCoultre brand in 1937.
In 1844, Jaeger-LeCoultre registered the invention of the “Millonometer”; the world’s most accurate instrument that made it possible to measure the micron.
In 1907, the Calibre 145 was created, the world’s thinnest mechanical movement (1,38mm) and, in 1929, the Calibre 101, the world’s smallest movement was released.
Invented in 1928 by Jean-Léon Reutter, but further developed and produced by Jaeger-LeCoultre, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Atmos practically achieved the old dream of perpetual motion, drawing its energy from the slightest variations of temperature.
In 1931, one of the most important of the brands creations was made: the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso. Originally created for the British officers stationed in India to withstand the hard knocks of their polo game, the Reverso patent read: “a watch capable of gliding in its carriage and turning over on itself completely”. After a short time, this watch became an Art Déco classic and is currently one of the rare icons in luxury watchmaking .
After WWII, the manufacturer launched a collection of watches aimed at people with active lifestyles and which offered precision, functionality and sturdiness. These started in 1956, when the first automatic alarm wristwatch was released, named the Memovox. In 1965, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris followed. Later, the Futurematic and the Geomatic also took their place in the Jaeger-LeCoultre legend.
More recently, in 1992, Jaeger-LeCoultre created the “1000 Hours Control”: a series of tests that gave rise to a new benchmark in timepiece reliability.
In 2004, there was the launch of the Gyrotourbillon, a spherical tourbillon which was memorably complicated. In 2006, in order to celebrate the 75th anniversary of one of the most important of the Jaeger-LeCoultre models, the Reverso, made the brands dream come true. Known as the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Great Complication, this was the only watch to measure civil, sidereal and perpetual time. An extremely refined and complex mechanism, it was the first watch to display the time with three dials.
The company’s official website provides you with detailed information on the workings of Jaeger-LeCoultre. This is presented through a range of videos and images which trace the brand’s history, from design to hand-made decorations. It is also possible to follow the company’s plans to extend their manufacturing warehouse by 9000 m² (bringing the total surface to 16000 m²). A central criteria for these plans is the preservation of the surrounding environment. It appears that for the Jaeger-LeCoultre watchmakers, their creativity particularly benefits from the green of the mountains and the quietness of the lake.
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