“Elegant” is the very first word that comes to mind when describing the Reverso Squadra Lady Duetto watch from Jaeger LeCoultre. There are over 260 parts on this one, patiently assembled by hand. The end result is a dazzling watch that might as well make ladies wish for one at first glance. After all, it’s so easy to fall in love with this watch. The classic design speaks of beauty and strength, of simplicity and luxury, and of an elegance fit for a queen.

There are 2 versions available: the steel version and the pink gold version. Though both versions incorporate the same overall look, the pink gold version is the more luxurious of the two. The dial, hands, crown, case, and strap clasps are made from 18-carat pink gold (instead of steel) and features 75 full-cut diamonds totaling about 1.20 carats. The steel version only offers about 0.55 carats diamond.

As with all Reverso watches from Jaeger LeCoultre, the Squadra Lady Duetto offers a swiveling case. The front shows the hour, minute, date, and a day/night indication while the back shows only the hour and minute. As an added feature, the bracelet/strap is interchangeable from a choice of steel bracelet and articulated rubber or alligator leather strap with folding clasp in steel or 18-carat pink gold.

by Eric Engh, CEO OF Oldwatch.com

A cardstock invite to an “A-list” function in New York? Okay. Held at the new Morgan Library & Museum? Even better. What’s the occasion? A gala affair to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso! Now, that’s something I can warm up to regardless of the weather.

On the evening of November 6, 2006, Jaeger-LeCoultre threw a party at the Morgan Library & Museum to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the legendary Reverso. It was a beautiful, well-attended event with about 400 guests including actors Matt Dillon and Joe Pantoliano.

Although there was no short supply of celebrities, the real superstars were the displays of Reverso watches from vintage to new including the new Squadra Reverso, and the $375,000 Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Triptyque.The first timepiece with three faces and 18 complications demonstrates Jaeger-LeCoultre’s ability to continue innovating.

Jaeger-LeCoultre is an exceptional watch company with a proud 173-year reign; moreover, their flagship Reverso is a extraordinary watch with an intriguing history.

While on a trip to India in 1930, Cesar de Trey, a friend of Jacques David LeCoultre, accepted the challenge of a polo match with some friends. After the match, a British polo player showed De Trey his watch with a broken glass. For some odd reason, British officers liked wearing their watches while they

played. The watches of the era didn’t fare very well under extreme conditions with their crystal exposed. If the crystal broke, then the dial and the hands would soon receive a similar fate.

Many of the watches designed during the World War I used metal mesh-guards over the face of the watch to protect the glass. Even though it protected the dial and hands it made the timepiece difficult to read. Summarily, it was a poor solution to the vexing problem of how to protect the glass and
face of the watch.

This article was published originally in issue 10.1 of hr: Watches & Luxury Lifestyle Magazine. Subscribe to hr: magazine and enjoy similar articles www.hrluxury.com.

Like a show of fireworks, the Grande Maison, as JLC has come to be known, continues to amaze watch fans with new technical innovations year-after-year. In the fall of 2005, to continue its partnership with Aston Martin, JLC unveiled the AmVox2 Racing Chronograph, the second piece in this co-branding series. Like Aston Martin’s cars, JLC chose to make this chronograph sexy and different from the rest of the pack.
 Most chronographs are operated by pressing on push-pieces which protrude from the side of the case. JLC has become the first company to do away with lateral triggers by offering a vertical trigger. Invented by one of JLC’s youngest team members, Francis Cretin, the entire watch case pivots from top to bottom across the center (running between 9 o’clock and 3 o’clock). This allows all chronograph functions to be operated as easily as starting an Aston Martin ignition, which is push-button activated. Jaeger-LeCoultre opted to use its new in-house self-winding chronograph 751. Because of the vertical trigger operation, this movement is designated 751B, to differentiate it from the chronograph movement housed in the Master Compressor Chronograph.
 To begin timing an event, say the start of a race, one simply pushes down on the watch at the top of the dial, at 12 o’clock. If a pause is necessary, simply pressing the top of the dial downwards towards the wrist again stops the chronograph - the same way pressing the “A” button on a traditional chronograph (the pusher at 2 o’clock) starts & stops the mechanism. Once stopped, all one needs to do to reset the chronograph is to press on the crystal at the 6′  position and the hands and counters jump back to “zero.” When initially released, the watch was offered in a limited edition of 750 pieces in titanium and 200 pieces in platinum. JLC, then, decided to give the watch a distinct new look by offering it in steel and titanium in a limited run of 250 pieces. What makes this combination so unique is that the steel and titanium case is covered in a slick black coating of titanium oxide sealed with silicium oxide.

 On the dial, the 270 degree arc is reminiscent of Jaeger instrumentation from a by-gone era, when Jaeger supplied dashboard gauges to high-end automobiles in England. One will immediately notice the cut-outs at the bottom of the dial. These, like sexy negligee, scantily reveal the chronograph’s reset mechanism - the only place on the dial that does so. At the 9 o’clock and 3 o’clock positions of the dial, the 30-minute and 12-hour totalizers peak out from below the main time-dial, and are themselves luminescent. This is a tribute to the dials on a dashboard illuminating at night.
 On the side of the case is a lever that slides forwards, backwards or remains in the middle, depending on the desired function. If the user wishes to start and stop the chronograph, but not allow it to accidentally reset, sliding it forward blocks the reset mechanism. If full functionality of the chronograph’s features is desired, one simply leaves the slide in the middle position. If the user wants to wear the watch and ensure that the chronograph will not accidentally be activated at all, the lever needs only to be slid to the back position and the dial is blocked from pivoting in the case.
 Mounted on a waterproof black calfskin strap with double-blade deployment buckle (a recent transition for Jaeger-LeCoultre from single blade deployments), the strap fits well to almost any size wrist - even though the head is 44 millimeters in diameter. All-in-all, the AmVox2 is definitely the most original chronograph on the market and has enough uber-cool functionality to attract a consumer interest that far exceeds the supply.