3DLANES The Timeless History of Jaeger-LeCoultre: A Journey Through Watchmaking Excellence

Here is a post I have wanted to do for a while now. I have always admired JLC. Never had the privilege of owning one. The complications and craftsmanship of their pieces is incredible. So why are they not more of a bigger hit nowadays? Why don’t we hear more from them if they are the “Watchmakers’ watchmaker”? These questions will NOT be answered here. But I hope I can make you fall in love with what these guys do in the next paragraphs.

Let’s start, obviously, from the beginning. Jaeger-LeCoultre, a renowned Swiss luxury watch manufacturer. With a rich history dating back to 1833. It was started by Antoine LeCoultre, an inventor and self-taught watchmaker. He founded JLC in Le Sentier, Switzerland[1][3][5]. But not as the Jaeger-LeCoultre like we know it now. More on this on the following Key Milestones:

Key Milestones

1833: Antoine LeCoultre establishes a small watchmaking workshop in Le Sentier, Switzerland[1][3][5].

1844: LeCoultre invents the Millionomètre, the world’s most precise measuring instrument at the time[3].

1866: Antoine and his son Elie LeCoultre found LeCoultre & Cie, becoming the first full-fledged manufacture in Vallée de Joux[1][3].

1903: Edmond Jaeger, a Paris-based watchmaker, challenges Swiss manufacturers to produce ultra-thin movements. Jacques-David LeCoultre, Antoine’s grandson, accepts the challenge[1][3].

1937: The company is officially renamed Jaeger-LeCoultre, following years of collaboration between Jaeger and LeCoultre[3].

Innovations and Achievements

By 1900, over 350 different calibers were created by LeCoultre, including 128 with chronograph functions and 99 with repeater mechanisms[3]. In the spam of 70 years that the company had been alive, they had made that much progress. Crazy!

The company supplied movements to major watch manufacturers, like Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Vacheron Constantin for several decades[1][3]. Fortunately or unfortunately, they don’t anymore. This might be due the shift that the industry has taken. Major brands tend to go for the “In-House” movement trend. Mostly to showcase that they also know what they are doing. JLC now focuses on their own movements and watch lines.

In 1907, Jaeger-LeCoultre produced the world’s thinnest pocket watch[3]. The result was the Caliber 145. 1.38mm thick, insane! This collaboration is what cemented the now brand JLC. Officially formed in 1937.

The iconic Reverso watch was introduced in the 1930s, designed for polo players[5]. Developed by Jacques-David LeCoultre and French engineer René-Alfred Chauvot. Designed as a utilitarian watch for polo matches. Yes, the sport where you play field hockey on a horse. I don’t know how popular that sport was back then but to me that’s a first world problem. Today and then. Change my mind.

In 1953, Jaeger-LeCoultre unveiled the Memovox, the world’s first automatic wristwatch with an alarm function[5]. First powered by the manual-wind Caliber 489. Later to be upgraded to an automatic Caliber 815. Ok, fun fact. there is the Memovox Deep Sea. You might be asking, how the heck do they hear an alarm underwater? I asked the same question. And I also found the answer. It was an auditory and tactile reminder because it also vibrated. And by the way, Memovox means “Voice of Memory” in Latin.

Today, Jaeger-LeCoultre continues to be a leader in luxury watchmaking, known for its precision, innovation, and exquisite craftsmanship[1][5]. There are four watches worth mentioning as the most innovative in their line today. Duomètre Héliotourbillon Perpetual: a triple axis tourbillon and perpetual calendar. This is very simply put. there is more to it but I won’t mention here. Reverso Hybris Artistica Calibre 185: A minute repeater with astronomical functions. Master Control Chronograph Calendar: A triple calendar chrono. Finally, Polaris Mariner Memovox: a dive watch with alarm function, just like the Deep Sea Memovox.

I hope you enjoyed this brief JLC history review. Thank you for stopping by.