Lot Essay
Jaeger-LeCoultre’s famous Reverso celebrated its 91st birthday in 2022. The design has barely changed since it was first tested in 1931. Created as an ingenious solution to protecting the glass of a watch from getting smashed on the polo field, it allowed the players to turn or ‘reverse’ the dial side to the back so the glass was not exposed.
The form of the Reverso provides a natural canvas for decoration with its usually empty rectangular case back and therefore the company offers a multitude of personalization options for that reason. However, the Reverso à Éclipses is much more complex and exclusive, instead it is enamelled on the dial which can be hidden by a rolling shutter. Whilst still functioning as a Reverso in the traditional sense with swiveling case, the shutter mechanism allows the wearer three different views of the hand-painted dial. Jaeger LeCoultre is one of the few Swiss manufacturers with their own in-house enamel workshop. Each painting is a unique and an entirely hand-painted work of art which was painstakingly reproduced using the technique of miniature enamel painting which is fired at high temperatures.
The form of the Reverso provides a natural canvas for decoration with its usually empty rectangular case back and therefore the company offers a multitude of personalization options for that reason. However, the Reverso à Éclipses is much more complex and exclusive, instead it is enamelled on the dial which can be hidden by a rolling shutter. Whilst still functioning as a Reverso in the traditional sense with swiveling case, the shutter mechanism allows the wearer three different views of the hand-painted dial. Jaeger LeCoultre is one of the few Swiss manufacturers with their own in-house enamel workshop. Each painting is a unique and an entirely hand-painted work of art which was painstakingly reproduced using the technique of miniature enamel painting which is fired at high temperatures.