In 1931, Jaeger-LeCoultre launched its famous Reverso watch with a swivelling case – a sleek and streamlined emblem of Art Deco style, originally conceived for polo-playing British Army officers in India who wished to protect the glass of their timepieces from stray mallet swings and polo balls. The watch’s classic and refined style made it popular beyond the playing field, and the timepiece swiftly became an object of desire, embodying contemporary culture and the geometric principles of the new machine age. For more than 90 years, the Reverso has retained its status as an icon of elegance, one which has enriched the history of 20th century horology by conveying a joyous synergy between aesthetics and functionality.
More than just a square-faced horological icon, the Reverso is an immaculately proportioned design breakthrough that adheres to the strict principles of the “golden ratio”. It is no coincidence that it was released the same year as Romanian novelist, publisher and mathematician Matila Ghyka’s masterwork entitled The Golden Number, which sought to explain the wonders of sacred geometry in nature and all the hidden harmonies that go with it..
Hidden harmonies have been the driving force of the Reverso ever since, so much so that the manufacturer has endowed this watch design near magical powers. For example, the Reverso Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 Quadriptyque, released in 2021, took six years to conceive and boasts 11 mind-blowing complications and four functioning display faces, which can predict astronomical events such as supermoons and eclipses.
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This year, the Swiss watchmaker has released another marvel, the Reverso Tribute Tourbillon Duoface which ingeniously introduces a flying tourbillon to a dual-functioning flippable face, one with a sunburst silver dial, the other with a black dial that also displays a second time zone and a day-night indicator. The tourbillon, which is visible from both sides, had to be radically resigned to fit neatly into the micro machine, a calibre which is only 3.9mm thick.
Instead of the upper and lower bridges that would support it, experts conceived a compact new ball bearing system along with a new patented S-shaped hairspring, allowing the spring and balance wheel to be fixed at the centre of the tourbillon, reducing weight and volume – in fact this whizzing wonder weighs less than a single gram. Seamless workmanship is everywhere, even in the fractional spaces that are imperceptible to the naked eye. For example, the guilloché “clous de Paris” pattern that you see on the gold bridges is made up of 232 hand-engraved lines, each one repeated six times to fully achieve this light-reflecting textural effect. Indeed, there are 254 components in this watch, so assembling each part is an act of almost preternatural precision.
Speaking about the tourbillon at the Watches & Wonders fair in Geneva in March, Jaeger-LeCoultre’s CEO Catherine Rénier said: “This is one of the most highly sophisticated timepieces of the Reverso collection, a fusion of technical prowess and aesthetic mastery.” A statement that surely explains why this model is part of an ultra limited run of just 50 pieces.
Feat of engineering
Jaeger-LeCoultre has also released the Reverso Tribute Chronograph, which is powered by the new in-house 860 calibre. Here, the restrictions faced by the workshop were to do with fitting this round stop-start complication into a square case. The solution was to add the retrograde counter at the bottom of the dial with extra long levers to span the full height of the calibre helped along by slimline clutch to ensure the smooth and precise function of the stopwatch mechanism. To show off this feat of engineering, the back case is completely open-worked, and of course, the wearer can decide which side to show off by simply sliding the face.
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The rear face of the 2023 Reverso Tribute Chronograph
Jewellery lovers will be delighted to hear that the Reverso has also had a category boost as a “secret” necklace, directly inspired by gem-set models of the 1930s. The 55cm-long necklace is set with more than 3,000 diamonds and features a suspended dial that acts as a pendant. Swivel it around and time is revealed on a beautiful black enamel, diamond-set dial that oozes Art Deco elegance.
Alexandra Zagalsky is a London-based journalist specialising in luxury, art and travel. She began her career working on a cultural guide for English-speaking expats in Paris, where her first major break was an interview with Lionel Poilâne, the late baker of Saint-Germain-des-Prés famed for his signature sourdough loaves. Returning to London in her early 20s, she went on to write for not only The Week but also The Art Newspaper’s Art of Luxury supplement, The Telegraph and The Times, as well as art and design platforms including 1stDibs’ Introspective Magazine and the magazines of the V&A, Sotheby’s and Christie’s. She studied fine art and art history at Goldsmiths, University of London and continues to explore travel journalism through the lens of art, craftsmanship and culture.
