New Reverso Jaeger-leCoultre models

announces Masha Kommersant-Tsukanova

Jaeger-leCoultre presented new models of its most famous watch, the Reverso, in Florida. Florida, in particular Palm Beach, is good for its endless polo fields, and therefore the choice of a site for the presentation of new products is absolutely clear. The history of Reverso itself began with polo. A British officer who was fond of this game broke his favorite watch in India during one of the fierce tournaments. A friend, the Swiss Cesar de Trey, came to the aid of the victim, who immediately came up with a way to protect the then fragile dials - you just had to turn the case with the back side up. Fortunately, M. de Trey had not only a vivid imagination, but also useful contacts. In particular, he was friends with Jacques David Le Coultre, which was enough for the first Reverso to be born in March 1931.

For 77 years, they have earned the right to be the flagship model of Jaeger-leCoultre, become one of the five main watches of the 20th century, and have acquired absolute recognition. And it is not at all surprising that the brand returns with such persistence to reversible models and regularly presents them on polo fields.

Meanwhile, Florida is not only a blissful equestrian Palm Beach, but also an incendiary Miami, without which not all facets of the new Reverso would remain revealed.

At this Reverso birthday, gifts went to everyone: Gyrotourbillon 2 - conservatives, fans of classics and complications, Squadra Polo Fields - progressive gentlemen, lovers of sports and technology, and, finally, Squadra Lady - women who follow trends.

Reverso Squadra Polo Fields

Squadra Polo Fields inherited the sporting values of the first Reverso. It is no secret that since 1931 the tastes of the public have become so democratized, and the Reverso watch has become so elevated, that the model, once intended for the saddle and stables, can now be worn for less than a board of directors. Recently, Jaeger-leCoultre has been gradually correcting this dissonance. That is, it’s not that formal classic models have completely stopped being made here (see Gyrotourbillon 2), but noticeably more frisky examples have been added to them. Two years ago, a new generation of Reverso, Squadra, was released. The dignified rectangle turned into a youthful square. In the Squadra Polo Fields model, this square has acquired a new skin - its body is made not of the usual precious metals or steel, but of high-tech ceramics.

This is a fundamentally black watch. The fact is that only black dye does not degrade the quality of ceramics. It is fused at a temperature of 2000 degrees from zirconium and yttrium oxide, while the organic substances from the mixture evaporate and the body shrinks by 20-30% - Jaeger-leCoultre craftsmen reject workpieces that are warped during shrinkage, as well as those in which air bubbles have formed. The resulting material turns out to be twice as strong as the strongest steel, as hard as sapphire, and in appearance does not at all resemble ceramics, but rather like some kind of light metal. The case is ground with diamond tools and polished with diamond dust, which takes 11 hours (for comparison: a steel case takes about 3 hours, and the ceramic models we are used to are stamped in 1 minute).

The appearance of the Squadra Polo Fields plays on the square theme: the black carbon fiber dial is decorated with an angular pattern, the chronograph scales and large date are enclosed in square windows - all indicators are large and displayed in bright white paint, so that you can see them at full gallop. Anti-reflective sapphire crystal serves the same purpose. The blackness of the case and rubberized bracelet is emphasized by mountings made of titanium or rose gold (the number of gold models will be limited to 500 pieces).

Of course, Reverso wouldn't be what it is if the back side of the case hadn't been used in them. In the Squadra Polo Fields, it features a translucent time zone indicator, some of the standard positions of which Jaeger-leCoultre has replaced with world polo centers. Thus, the American Palm Beach, Argentine Palermo, English Hem London, Spanish Sotogrande and Arab Dubai appeared on the indicator.

Perhaps the "faces" of Jaeger-leCoultre - professional polo players Claire Mountbatten, the Marquise of Milford Haven, the eldest of the famous Astrada polo brothers, Eduardo Novilla Astrada, and the world's best player Adolfo Cambiaso - will not think of checking their watches during the next chukker , but at the watch launch in Palm Beach, this sporty model paired well with their leather boots, team jerseys and helmets.

Reverso Gyrotourbillon 2

In Gyrotourbillon 2, climbing on a horse and swinging a stick is somehow embarrassing. That's not what they were made for. This is a collection series; only 75 of these tourbillons will be assembled in two years. Gyrotourbillon 2 is a celebratory watch in the classic massive rectangular Reverso case. And we have three reasons for calling them meditative.

Firstly, they can be used to study watchmaking - from ancient inventions to the latest complex developments. For the Gyrotourbillon 2, Jaeger-leCoultre had to create a new caliber and four new patents. Let's take a closer look at the most significant detail of this watch - the spherical tourbillon, which neutralizes the effect of gravity in all planes. The tourbillon rotates in three dimensions thanks to two carriages connected at an angle of 90 degrees, the inner one of which rotates in 18.75 seconds, and the outer one in a minute. For the first time in watch mechanics, a cylindrical balance spring with end curves, previously used only in marine chronometers or large pocket watches, was placed in the heart of the tourbillon to give them maximum accuracy.

Secondly, you can admire this tourbillon for an extremely long time. We would call the style of this outstanding model in every sense technological baroque. The watch case is conventionally divided into upper and lower zones. In the center of the first is the dial itself, surrounded by exposed parts of the mechanism, in the center of the second is a spherical tourbillon in a frame made of guilloché platinum. Intersecting, the round dial and the rounded tourbillon form the infinity sign, the figure eight. This is not a new move, many watchmakers and jewelers resort to it, but in Gyrotourbillon 2 infinity turns out to be fascinatingly alive - the minute and hour hands describe circles without stopping, the tourbillon, against all laws of logic, rotates in all planes at once. The Jaeger-leCoultre figure eight comes to life in three dimensions—after all, the tourbillon is spherical, voluminous, and convex. Colorful touches also add life to this watch: pink sapphire bolts, gold and gilded parts peeking out from the depths of the mechanism, blue-hardened hands and a cylindrical balance spring. The same color strokes are used on the skeletonized back of the case.

Finally, the “beating” of the coil spring inside the rotating tourbillon resembles the beat of a heart, so this watch is good for meditation, just like, for example, with a rosary.

Reverso Squadra Lady

Jaeger-leCoultre openly sympathizes with men: the most complex Reverso models are intended for them, take the same Squadra - the stronger sex got it two years ago. Women are usually less lucky in this field - such famous watchmakers as Jaeger-leCoultre, of course, are more interested in tinkering with men's complications than with women's “beauties”. Until now, the main women's Reverso was considered the Duetto, released a good ten years ago, a model with two stylistically different dials - Broadway & Subway, as the American public calls them. And this month, Jaeger-leCoultre paid tribute to the woman: at the pool party in Miami, to our delight, they presented a whole collection of various women's Squadra.

The new watches are available in two sizes: sportier, larger (Classic) and feminine miniature (Lady). The models differ stylistically: either they are very restrained, office-like with strict numbers and a lapidary square frame on the dial as the only decoration, or more relaxed, flirty with frivolous numbers placed along the edge of a decorative circle on the dial. The back of the women's Squadra can reveal the self-winding movement, or can remain closed, providing space for custom engraving. Squadra Lady is equipped with an original date window: it is visible through the “donut” of the number “6” - however, you don’t have to watch the time so closely; models without a date function are also available. We can also choose the degree of elegance of these watches: the Squadra collection features bezels with and without diamond edges.

Of course, the Squadra Duetto with two “faces” seems to us the most attractive of the new products. The black, more austere and aggressive dial is secured with four decorative bolts, and the self-winding mechanism is brought out in the form of a rotating guilloche wheel. On the elegant white dial, the numbers are written more freely, the “six” encloses the date window, and a decorative day/night indicator is placed in the center. Jaeger-leCoultre took into account the trend for watches with diamonds and produced two varieties of the Squadra Duetto - with stones on both sides of the case, and also with diamonds only on the white, solemn side.

Another nice feature of the Squadra Lady is a set of colored bracelets and straps, made of plain or reptile skin, steel or ceramic, which can be unfastened and fastened with one press of a miniature button. So Jaeger-leCoultre brought the “watches” category, which is not completely understandable for women, as close as possible to the absolutely understandable and beloved “accessories” category.

Before the presentation of the Squadra Lady, Jaeger-leCoultre President Jerome Lambert himself did not fully understand what an important watch his manufactory produced. At a holiday party at The Shore Club Miami, before Mr. President, his colleagues and journalists began to push each other into the pool, Jerome Lambert saw a lady in a black and white Chanel dress. On her wrist was a brand new Squadra Duetto. From time to time she turned its case, changing the dials from black to white and from white to black - and in both cases the watch matched the outfit one hundred percent. Mr. Lambert's delight knew no bounds: “We have come up with the perfect watch for a Chanel dress!”

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