Jaeger-LeCoultre Watches

The Founding of the Seminal Organization

In 1833 Antoine LeCoultre (1803-1881) founded a small workshop, which was to
become the Manufacture Jaeger-LeCoultre.

The micrometre

In 1844, LeCoultre measured the micrometre (μm) for the first time; he created the
world's most precise measuring instrument, the millionometer (a device capable of
measuring to the nearest thousandths of a millimetre).

The keyless works

In 1847, LeCoultre created a revolutionary system that eliminated the need for keys to
rewind and set watches. A push-piece activated a lever to change from one function to
another.

Early awards & recognition

In 1851 at the first Universal Exhibition in London, LeCoultre was awarded a gold medal
in recognition of his collective works in the fields of precision and mechanization.

The founding of the Manufacture

Elie LeCoultre, Antoine's son understood that it was necessary to control all the different
stages of manufacturing and assembly. In 1866 he transformed his workshop into a
manufacture. Under one roof, his employees were to pool their know-how, enabling them
to meet the most incredible challenges. In 1870 LeCoultre & Cie manufactured the
components of complicated movements using mechanized processes. Within 30 years,
thanks to the marriage of hand and machine, the Manufacture created more than 350
different calibers of which 128 were equipped with chronograph functions and 99 with
repeater mechanisms. Today the original workshop has expanded into an all inclusive
manufacturing facility, able to produce all components required for a Jaeger-LeCoultre
timepiece. Recently, construction has begun to expanded the workshop even further.
Jaeger-LeCoultre continues to produce luxury timepieces that pass the test of time and are
considered by connoisseurs to be among the very best in the world.

Nineteenth century achievement

 • 1844 Invention of the Millionometer.
• 1847 Invention of the crown winding system.
• 1851 Gold medal at the Universal Exposition in London.
• 1867 LeCoultre becomes the first Manufacture in the Vallée de Joux.
• 1890 The Manufacture makes 125 simple calibers and 31 complicated calibers.

A relationship with Patek Philippe

From 1902 and for the next 30 years, LeCoultre & Cie produced most of the movement
blanks for Patek Philippe of Geneva.

The coming together of Jaeger & LeCoultre

In 1903, the Parisian Edmond Jaeger challenged the Swiss to manufacture ultra-thin
calibers of his own design. Jacques-David LeCoultre, grandson of Antoine undertook the
challenge.

A relationship with Cartier

Cartier, a client of Edmond Jaeger for several years signed an exclusive contract with the
Parisian watchmaker in 1907 under which agreement Jaeger, LeCoultre & Cie crafted the
stunning watch creations of Cartier.

Twentieth century Achievements

Out of the two men's friendship was to emerge one of the most beautiful collections of
ultra-thin pocket watches, followed by other creations that would culminate in the Jaeger-
LeCoultre brand. In 1907 the JLC Caliber 145 set the record for the thinnest movement at
1.38 mm. However, there were many other achievements of Jaeger-LeCoultre:

• 1903 World's thinnest pocket watch movement.

• 1925 Invention of the Duoplan watch.
• 1930 Manufacturing of the Atmos clock (after purchasing the patent from Jean-
Leon Reutter, who invented it in 1920)
• 1929 World's smallest movement Caliber 101, barely 1 gram and composed of 74
parts.
• 1931 8-day double-barrel wristwatch Caliber 124.
• 1931 Creation of the Reverso, designed in Paris by René-Alfred Chauvot and
patented on March 4, 1931.
• 1932 creation of the Uniplan wristwatch.
• 1937 Official renaming of the Jaeger-LeCoultre brand.
• 1938 Compass miniature camera.
• 1941 Jaeger-LeCoultre earns the highest distinctions from the Neuchâtel
Observatory for its Jaeger-LeCoultre tourbillon Caliber 170.
• 1946 First Jaeger-LeCoultre automatic watch, caliber 476.
• 1950 Creation of the Memovox, calibers 489 and 814.
• 1953 Creation of the Futurematic, automatic watch with no winding-crown.
• 1956 First automatic alarm wristwatch, the automatic Memovox produced
between 1956 and 1968, it is equipped with Jaeger-LeCoultre Caliber 815.
• 1958 Geophysic Chronometer, caliber 478BWSbr
• 1961 Deep Sea Alarm - world's first dive watch with alarm movement! Calibre
815
• 1962 Ultra-thin Caliber 838.
• 1967 Jaeger-LeCoultre takes part in the creation of the first quartz wristwatch in
watch making history, the Beta 2.
• 1979 Merger of Jaeger-LeCoultre Genève with the manufactureLeCoultre in Le
Sentier
• 1980 Re-introduction of the long-abandoned Reverso in a new and slimmer
design requiring the invention of the first semi-circular sapphire glass.
• 1980 Presentation of the first ultra-slim quartz-mouvement 602 followed by the
603
• 1980 Re-creation of the worlds smallest watch-mouvement - caliber 101
• 1980 Caliber 839 is the basis for the re-launch of Breguet
• 1981 Jaeger-LeCoultre Caliber 606 with date display and centre seconds is the
thinnest in its category.
• 1981 Radical redesign of the ATMOS-clock with fewer moving parts
• 1981 JaegerLeCoultre takes over the watch division of Jaeger France from
MATRA thus unifying the brand world-wide
• 1982 Caliber 601 earns the title of the world's thinnest movement, and the same
year the caliber 608 becomes even thinner.
• 1982 Creation of the Jaeger-LeCoultre museum in LeSentier
• 1983 To celebrate the 150 year anniversary of the Manufacture the company
manufactures a limited series of the smallest ever made rectangular
complications : month/day/date/phase de lune/petite seconde
• 1983 Caliber 889, with jumping date display is a vivid example. In 1992, this will
become the movement which equips the very first watch to surmount the rigorous
Master 1000 Hours test.
• 1989 Grand Réveil, automatic Jaeger-LeCoultre Caliber 919 comprises no less
than 350 parts, a perpetual calendar with moon phases and alarm.
• 1990 Géographique, Caliber 929 with 24 time zones, day-night indication, power-
reserve and a high-frequency balance.
• 1991 Reverso 60ème manually wound Jaeger-LeCoultre Caliber 824.
• 1992 Master 1000 Hours, based on an unparalleled set of strict standards, the
battery of tests composing the Master 1000 Hours control procedure guarantee the
exceptional reliability and precision of the first Master Control.
• 1993 Reverso tourbillon.
• 1994 Reverso a minute repeater; Reverso Duo, Caliber 854.
• 1996 Reverso with a retrograde chronograph.
• 1998 Reverso with a time-zone mechanism in 1998.
• 2000 Reverso with a perpetual calendar.
Peripheral mechanical works

Also, the company has supplied measuring instruments, primarily dashboard instruments
such as speedometers and fuel meters. The Jaeger instruments for automobiles were
mostly used by the French automobile makers Citroën, Peugeot and Renault. Jaeger
speedometers and tachometers were also supplied to British sports cars such as Triumph.
Many Italian cars such as Ferrari also had Jaeger sourced automobile instrumentation.

A distinction to be made (and a relationship with

Longines)
Watches sold in North America were sold under the LeCoultre name from October 1932
to approximately 1985. After that the Jaeger-LeCoultre name was adopted uniformly
worldwide. According to factory records and as best as can be determined, the last
movement to be used in an American LeCoultre watch shipped out of Le Sentier in 1976.

There is much confusion over the use of LeCoultre name for the North American market.
Some collectors and misinformed dealers go so far as to make the erroneous claim that
the American LeCoultre has nothing to do with Jaeger-LeCoultre Switzerland. The
confusion stems from the fact that, in the 1950s, the North American distributor of
LeCoultre watches was the Longines-Wittnauer group, which was also responsible for the
distribution of Vacheron & Constantin timepieces. Collectors have confused this
distribution channel with the actual manufacturer of the watches. Outside the actual
distribution channel, the LeCoultre product, at the manufacturing level, had nothing to do
with either Longines, Wittnauer or Vacheron Constantin. In addition, the LeCoultre
trademark was owned by the Société Anonyme de la Fabrique D'Horlogerie LeCoultre &
Cie, Le Sentier. The LeCoultre trademark expired and was replaced by the Jaeger-
LeCoultre trademark in 1985.

The Atmos- Atmospheric- almost Perpetual Motion

Clock & a strange history
Thanks to his friend César de Trey (1876-1953), who will also contribute to the creation
of the Reverso), Jacques-David LeCoultre discovers the fascinating "eternal" clock. After
a detailed scrutiny of its mechanism, he notes that only the finest watchmakers will be
able to rise to this technical challenge. Jean-Léon Reutter (1899-1971)shares this
conviction and after years of research was issued a patent in 1926. In 1928, the first
prototypes of a clock that draws its energy from the slightest atmospheric variations is
presented. Entirely made within the Manufacture since 1936, the Atmos has become a
legend of its time. Its prestige earns it status as the official gift of the Swiss Government.

Since some time prior to 1937 a Swiss corporation, Le Coultre & Cie, S.A. (hereafter Le
Coultre Co.), had manufactured a clock unique in the horological world by reason of its
source of energy. Although spring driven, it was/is so contrived that the spring is wound
by very slight changes in the temperature of the atmosphere. No manual winding or other
external source of energy is required. These features induced the manufacturer at an early
date to name the clock 'Atmos -- the Perpetual Motion Clock.'

Initially it was made in a variety of designs, but by 1937 it was decided to give so unique
a mechanism a distinctive outward appearance. Accordingly, the old designs were
withdrawn and replaced by the one still in use. It is a simple yet elegant open-dial model
made of brass, set on a brass base and covered by a detachable case consisting of four
crystal sides and a crystal top set in a brass framework. As of 1954, neither the
mechanism nor the design had been patented. The name Atmos, however, which is
always used to describe this atmospherically operated clock, has been registered in the
United States Patent and Trademark Office, as the property of Establissements Ed.
Jaeger of France.

A relationship with Vacheron Constantin

At the time, Le Coultre Co., the manufacturer, had no sales organization. Jaeger, the
intervenor, was the sole sales outlet for all Le Coultre Co. products, including the Atmos
clock. In 1939 Jaeger in a written contract granted Vacheron the right to sell and advertise
the Atmos clock in the United States. This right, however, was not exclusive. The
contract reserved to Jacques Cartier, Inc. of New York the right, granted some time in
1937 or before to import and sell Atmos clocks in the United States at retail under the
same 'Cartier' which appears prominently on the dial of all the Atmos clocks so sold.

Since 1939, all Atmos clocks, other than Cartier's, sold and displayed in the United
States, have been imported by Vacheron and have borne prominently on the dial the name
'Le Coultre' which during the life of their contract Jaeger has authorized Vacheron to use.
'Le Coultre' is registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office as the property
of Le Coultre Co., the manufacturer.

Vacheron was a wholly owned and controlled subsidiary of Longines-Wittnauer Watch

Co., Inc. of New York (hereafter called Longines). The corporate interrelationship of
Vacheron and Longines was generally not known even in the trade. All Vacheron's
accounts were carried on the books of Longines which handled all Vacheron's finances.
From 1939 to 1949 Vacheron had no sales force of its own and the Atmos Clocks it
imported during those 10 years were advertised by Longines and sold by Longines' sales
force. Since 1949, however, a separate sales staff which is paid by Longines has been
assigned to Vacheron. Both Vacheron and Longines had advertised the Atmos as the Le
Coultre Atmos -- The Perpetual Motion Clock. The Atmos is always advertised under that
name as a unique clock operated by changes in atmospheric temperature. In July, 1952,
the Atmos, whether designated 'Cartier' or 'Le Coultre,' was readily distinguishable from
all other clocks then on the market by virtue of its appearance alone as well as by its
unique mechanism. Business concerns have frequently chosen the 'Le Coultre' Atmos
because of its outstanding appearance and performance as a presentation piece for merit
awards.