Inside Jaeger-LeCoultre’s manufacture: a journey through two centuries of Swiss watchmaking mastery in the Vallée de Joux
There’s a particular thrill in fastening my Jaeger-LeCoultre onto my wrist before setting out for the maison’s manufacture in the Vallée de Joux. It provides a sense of connection to a lineage of innovation that began in 1833, when Antoine LeCoultre first set up his workshop in this remote Swiss valley. Our small group of editors left the frenetic energy of Watches and Wonders behind in Geneva and the city faded into the rolling green of the Jura—a gentle transition from the world of commerce to the world of craft. As the air grew crisper, the conversations in the car turned to the legends of Jaeger-LeCoultre: its more than 1,200 calibres, 430 patents and reputation as the “watchmaker of watchmakers”.
We pull up to the complex with its historic façade, restored to its 19th-century glory, “Manufacture D’horlogerie” emblazoned above the entrance, in case we weren’t sure we’d come to the right place. We head first to the comparatively new Heritage Gallery, built in 1988 on the very spot where LeCoultre started his adventure. The bright space is home to more than 500 horological marvels—pocket watches, wristwatches, clocks and movements—spanning nearly two centuries, and anchored by a replica of LeCoultre’s original workbench, his tools laid out as if he had just stepped away. The workshop within, its whitewashed walls, sunlight streaming in through the six windows and simple tools on display, evoke images of a genius at work, dreaming up inventions that would change watchmaking forever. It’s a profoundly moving sight and a tangible link to the maison’s beginnings.
The Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso “Indian Beauty” circa 1936 displayed at the manufacture in Vallée de Joux (Photo: courtesy of Jaeger-LeCoultre)
I linger over the oldest known Reverso, the legendary “Indian Beauty” commissioned by the Maharaja of Tripura, featuring an exquisite miniature enamel painting of a mysterious Indian woman whose identity remains unknown. This extraordinary 1936 timepiece marked the beginning of Jaeger- LeCoultre’s celebrated tradition of miniature enamel artistry, transforming the Reverso’s blank caseback into a canvas for some of the most intricate and evocative works in horological history. This piece is displayed alongside the world’s smallest mechanical movement, the Calibre 101, a masterpiece of miniaturisation that weighs barely a gram and can only be assembled by a handful of watchmakers in the world. The gallery’s monumental, curved glass wall, over five metres wide and nearly five metres high, serves as a backdrop for 340 of the maison’s 1,262 movements—a stunning testament to the spirit of invention that has defined Jaeger-LeCoultre since its founding.
Throughout the gallery, interactive screens share details of the maison’s milestones; you can even find out what Jaeger- LeCoultre was working on in the year you were born. Upstairs, the restoration workshop is a hive of quiet concentration, where master watchmakers coax life back into timepieces from decades past, drawing on original designs and a collection of nearly 6,000 swages— metal-stamping templates that allow them to recreate components no longer in production.
Unlike most watch brands, Jaeger-LeCoultre has, since the 19th century, gathered all 180 watchmaking skills under one roof—in an era when most craftsmen worked in isolation from their homes. Today, more than 1,300 artisans, engineers, designers and watchmakers work side by side, sharing knowledge and pooling talents. This integration is about efficiency, cross-pollination of ideas, the preservation of ancestral knowhow and the daily inspiration that comes from being in close proximity to masters of other crafts.
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An enlarged depiction of the Reverso calibre (Photo: courtesy of Jaeger-LeCoultre)
In the design studio, I watch as designers sketch with pencil on paper, their ideas shaped by both heritage and technical necessity. At Jaeger-LeCoultre, design is not just about aesthetics; it is about the architecture of the movement, the ergonomics of the case and the seamless integration of form and function. Designers and technical specialists work closely, ensuring that every timepiece is as beautiful on the inside as it is on the outside.
We’re granted access to the industrial side of watchmaking where we witness processes rarely seen by outsiders. Here, raw metal is cut, stamped and transformed; blanked, machined, heat-treated and assembled. Each operation is performed by a specialist, many of whom have spent decades perfecting their craft. I’m invited to try my hand at polishing a case—a deceptively complicated task that quickly humbles me. The polisher’s room is kept dim, with a perfect white work light illuminating every flaw. Even with guidance, I struggle to maintain the right pressure, my arms tiring far sooner than I’d expect. The artisans who do this work possess a strength and delicacy that can only be honed through years of practice.
In the Métiers Rares atelier, the rare handcrafts come alive: guillochage, engraving, gem-setting and Grand Feu enamelling. I watch as an engraver fashions subtle plays of light and shadow on a case, while nearby, an enameller layers Grand Feu enamel—a process that is as much alchemy as art. The gem- setter’s task is to secure precious stones to metal already decorated with other crafts, demanding extreme precision and delicacy.
A glass wall serves as a display for 340 movements (Photo: courtesy of Jaeger-LeCoultre)
Lunch at the 1931 Café is an unexpected delight. Few manufactures offer such hospitality in-house: Jaeger-LeCoultre’s café is an art deco haven, its design a loving homage to the Reverso’s golden age.
Our final stop is the high complications department, where we are ushered into the presence of the Reverso Quadriptyque—the most complicated Reverso ever made. Its four faces display 11 complications, including a tourbillon, minute repeater, perpetual calendar and a trio of moonphase indications, all powered by a movement made up of 800 parts. To see it in person, to hold it and feel its weight, is to witness the culmination of everything witnessed that day: the unity of 180 skills, the spirit of collective invention and the relentless pursuit of beauty and precision.
As we drove away through the dusk, the Jura hills fading behind us, I glance at my own Reverso and for a brief moment, I feel part of Antoine LeCoultre’s story. And I understand more than ever before why, for nearly two centuries, the world has looked to this quiet valley for the future of watchmaking.
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