JAEGER-LECOULTRE

Pre-owned Grande Reverso Calendar Q3752520 In Rose Gold

You know who makes a nice rectangular calendar wristwatch? Jaeger-LeCoultre. It's hard to do and in the haute horology game only Patek Philippe with its stepped case rectangular Gondola ref. 5200 and Vacheron Constantin with the not-strictly-rectangular-but-sort-of-enough Harmony Complete Calendar are the only other manufacturers presently attempting it. The Grande Reverso Calendar ref. 3752520 is a gorgeous watch and if you like Reversos you'll appreciate that while it looks simple the mechanics are stout and it's the first annual (or complete) calendar in the history of the Reverso line. It was released in 2012 along with several other Reversos including pieces in the Tribute collection so it didn't get the attention it should have. As a safety tip don't confuse the Grande Calendar with the Reverso Day-Date, or the 500-piece rose gold limited edition perpetual calendar Reverso from 2000, this isn't that or that. All three are complicated, the perpetual a bit more, the Day-Date a bit less, but marvels all. Can you imagine shoehorning almost 250 parts into an a box roughly the size of a large U.S. postage stamp that has the approximate depth of five U.S. nickels? It's crazy. Then make the dial layout classic and refined while adhering to Art Deco sensibilities - nigh on impossible to do consistently, which is one of the underscoring achievements of Jaeger-LeCoultre and its Reversos. They are always of-the-moment and en vogue. There simply cannot be a watch that historically follows a particular artistic movement while at the same time remaining steadfastly modern regardless of the decade. You can count the number of truly timeless wristwatches on less than two hands, a la the Patek Philippe Calatrava, the Cartier Tank, the Rolex Day-Date, the Omega Speedmaster Professional, the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso. Like so many cool, historical wristwatch stories the tale of the Reverso involves a European man traveling on business. It's 1930 in British-colonized India, Swiss businessman Cesar de Trey takes in a game of polo at a British officer's club and while visiting post match with a Hired Assassin - the term for a professional polo player - he's presented with a smashed wristwatch and a unique challenge: create a time piece that can withstand the punishment of the game. Upon returning to Switzerland he calls on friend and professional colleague Jacques-David LeCoultre of LeCoultre & Cie who in turn contacts business associate Edmond Jaeger of Jaeger S.A. who in turn contacts French designer René-Alfred Chauvot, who on March 4, 1931 registers the patent for the swiveling case, and the rest is of course history. Speaking of history, think what was happening when the Reverso debuted - the Roaring 20s had just drawn to a close on the heels of the 1929 U.S. stock market crash and the start of the Great Depression, the whole world was expanding and contracting and shifting all at once, politically, geographically, innovatively, economically, artistically - the Bauhaus was winding down and style moderne was surging - introducing a new anything was brave, much less a new technological bauble that no one really needed and the majority of people couldn't afford. The chance then that a single jewelry object would emerge with the Reverso's ongoing relevance is as rare as a Coelacanth. Part of the early appeal of Reversos was the owners' ability to personalize the solid reverse case with engraving, or engraving and colored lacquer, or miniature enamel painting. In the Grande Date, however, Jaeger opted for a different choice, a sapphire window to display the caliber 843, which might be decoration enough, it's absolutely lovely to look at. This is the watch you buy because they don't make 'em like this anymore, and that includes the independent brands - really, they don't. Do this for yourself and stand out in a room.