Jaeger-LeCoultre, a renowned Swiss watchmaker, has long been at the forefront of horological innovation. Their latest masterpiece, the Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 Quadriptyque, is a testament to the company’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of watchmaking. In this article, we’ll delve into the fascinating history of Jaeger-LeCoultre, explore the Hybris Mechanica collection, and highlight the incredible features of the Calibre 185 that make it a true work of art.
In 2006, Jaeger-LeCoultre introduced the Reverso Grande Complication à Triptyque, showcasing the possibilities of the 90-year-old reversible housing design. But even better, the Hybris Mechanica Caliber 185 Quadriptyque takes this design to a whole new level. This limited edition watch, with only ten copies available, boasts four different dials, including two housed in the reversible housing itself, which also holds the clockwork.
The other two dials are located in the base plate, housing the structural engineers. This complex and elegant white gold timepiece measures 51.2 x 31 millimeters and despite the addition of eleven functions, the highly complicated Quadriptyque sits at just 15.15 millimeters on the wrist.
The minute tourbillon, compensating for negative influences of gravity, performs a graceful pirouette when the elevator crown is turned to the right. The hands for hours and minutes also rotate on the first dial. Additionally, the perpetual calendar displays the date, day of the week, month, and leap year cycle.
When the case is flipped over, the back dial reveals a time display with a digital hour indication and wandering red arrowhead for the minutes. The minute repeater can be controlled with a slider above the crown now located on the left, and a silent centrifugal governor regulates the process speed. The minute strike on angular gongs also features a smooth transition from hours to quarters of an hour. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
History of Jaeger-LeCoultre
1.1. Founding and Early Years
The story of Jaeger-LeCoultre dates back to 1833 when Antoine LeCoultre, a self-taught watchmaker, founded his workshop in the Swiss Vallée de Joux. With a passion for precision and innovation, LeCoultre’s workshop quickly garnered a reputation for creating outstanding timepieces.
1.2. The Reverso and Memovox
Over the years, Jaeger-LeCoultre has been responsible for some of the most iconic watches in history. The Reverso, introduced in 1931, features a unique reversible case that protects the watch’s delicate face during polo matches. The Memovox, launched in 1950, boasts an ingenious alarm function, which has been continually refined in subsequent models.
The Hybris Mechanica Collection
2.1. Overview
The Hybris Mechanica collection, introduced in 2003, represents the pinnacle of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s watchmaking expertise. These timepieces combine complex mechanical movements with exceptional design, showcasing the brand’s mastery of horological complications.
2.2. Development of Hybris Mechanica Models
Over the years, Jaeger-LeCoultre has released numerous models in the Hybris Mechanica collection, each more intricate and innovative than the last. The Calibre 185, the latest addition to the collection, is the most complex wristwatch ever created by the brand, boasting an astounding 27 complications.
Key Features of the Calibre 185
3.1. Chime of the Heavens
The Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Quadriptyque is a remarkable timepiece that features a unique sonnerie mechanism that is unlike any other in the world. With over 150 years of experience in creating chiming wristwatches, Jaeger-LeCoultre is one of the few watchmaking manufactures with in-house expertise in this field.
The Quadriptyque is a masterful display of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s craftsmanship and innovation in chiming watches. With a slide of a lever, the watch releases a beautiful melody that consists of low notes to indicate the hours, alternating high and low notes for the quarter-hours, and high notes for the elapsed minutes since the last quarter-hour. The secondary time display on the watch shows the time in a jumping-hours and peripheral-minutes format, which is synchronized with the chiming mechanism.
The Quadriptyque features several unique elements of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s sonnerie expertise, including the silent chime governor, crystal gongs, square cross-sectional profile of the gongs, and articulated trebuchet hammers. These innovations allow the watch to produce some of the loudest and clearest chimes of any wristwatch on the market today.
One of the most impressive features of the Quadriptyque is its seamless chime that eliminates any pauses between the hours, quarters, and minutes. This is achieved through a novel engineering of the chiming components that reduces silent gaps between the groups of chimed notes.
3.2. Flying Tourbillon
The Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 features a flying tourbillon at the 7 o’clock position on the recto face of the case. The tourbillon, which rotates once per minute, helps achieve a more precise time measurement by varying the position of the balance. The Quadriptyque case’s recto face also includes a perpetual calendar, a mechanism that displays the correct date, accounting for leap years and irregular numbers of days in each month. The perpetual calendar indications are instantaneous, changing at midnight, demonstrating the precision of the Jaeger-LeCoultre Calibre 185 construction.
The Calibre 185’s complexities required the date to be displayed at the 5 o’clock position on the dial, necessitating the creation of a new system of date display discs to accommodate the flying tourbillon at the 7 o’clock position. Only a grande date display was deemed acceptable for a watch of such prestige. The opening chapter of the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 (Quadriptyque) is a testament to the brand’s mastery of mechanical horology and precision timekeeping.
3.3. Following the Stars
The art of timekeeping has been around for centuries, with early societies observing the movements of the celestial objects and developing myths and stories around them. The earliest astronomers were also mathematicians, and instruments based on their formulas were used to calculate the positions of celestial objects.
Jaeger-LeCoultre, a watch manufacture with almost two centuries of fine watchmaking expertise, has mastered all aspects of time expression, from the everyday to the esoteric. One of the hallmark complications of Jaeger-LeCoultre is the display of sidereal time, which is determined with reference to the stars instead of the sun.
For the first time in the history of mechanical horology, Jaeger-LeCoultre has combined three displays of lunar information – the synodic cycle, the draconic cycle, and the anomalistic cycle – in a single wristwatch. The Reverso Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 watch has a unique micromechanical combination of indications that allows the determination of eclipse events and rare lunar phenomena such as supermoons.
The moon phase display of the Reverso Quadriptyque is located on the top half of the interior face of the cradle and shows the phases of the moon in the Northern Hemisphere. The display requires only one adjustment after 1,111 years, which is much more accurate than conventional displays that accumulate one day of error after 32.5 months.
Below the moon phase display is a counter that shows the draconic cycle, indicating when the path of the moon intersects with the orbit of the Earth around the Sun. The counter also shows the alignment of the Moon, Earth, and Sun during an eclipse event. To the right of the draconic cycle counter is a domed representation of the Earth with a hemispherical moon in eccentric orbit around it, representing the anomalistic cycle and showing the varying distance between the Earth and Moon.
This display of the synodic, draconic, and anomalistic cycles together in a wristwatch is unprecedented in horology, with the latter two indications protected by patent, making the Reverso Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 the only watch ever made to provide such depth of information about astronomical phenomena.
Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Hybris Mechanica family of timepieces began in 2003 and has since grown to encompass close to 20 groundbreaking horological creations, including the Reverso Hybris Mechanica Grande Complication à Triptyque and the Master Ultra Thin Minute Repeater Flying Tourbillon. The word “Hybris” originates from the Greek “hubris,” which refers to the soaring ambition exhibited by legendary heroes of antiquity, and is a promise made by Jaeger-LeCoultre to continually expand the horizons of watchmaking.
3.4. Jumping Hour and Retrograde Minute
The Jumping Hour and Retrograde Minute complications further distinguish the Calibre 185 as an extraordinary timepiece. The Jumping Hour replaces the traditional hour hand with a rotating disc that instantly “jumps” to the next hour as the minute hand reaches 60. This allows for a more precise reading of the hour at a glance.
The Retrograde Minute is another unique feature that adds to the watch’s charm. Instead of following a continuous circular path, the retrograde minute hand moves along a semi-circular arc. Once it reaches the 60-minute mark, the hand instantly snaps back to the starting point, providing a captivating visual display of the passing minutes.
Together, these key features demonstrate the remarkable complexity and innovation found in the Jaeger-LeCoultre Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185, solidifying its place as a true masterpiece of horology.
Design and Craftsmanship
4.1. Exterior and Case
The Jaeger-LeCoultre Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185’s exterior is a testament to the brand’s commitment to exceptional design and craftsmanship. The case, made from white gold, is meticulously crafted to house the complex movement, while its sapphire crystal case back allows for a stunning view of the intricate mechanisms at work.
4.2. Dial and Hands
The dial of the Calibre 185 is a masterpiece in itself, featuring a combination of hand-engraved and guilloché patterns that showcase the watch’s various complications. The blued steel hands add a touch of elegance, ensuring that the time is always easy to read, even amid the wealth of information on display.
4.3. Movement and Finishing
The Calibre 185’s movement is a marvel of mechanical engineering, featuring over 1,000 individual components meticulously assembled by Jaeger-LeCoultre’s master watchmakers. The movement is finished to the highest standards, with polished and chamfered edges, Côtes de Genève stripes, and intricate hand engravings.
Limited Edition and Price
The Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 is a limited-edition timepiece, with only 10 examples produced. As one might expect from such an extraordinary watch, the price is equally impressive, reflecting the incredible complexity and craftsmanship that goes into each piece.
Final Thoughts
The Jaeger-LeCoultre Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 is an exceptional timepiece that pushes the boundaries of horology, combining unparalleled technical prowess with exquisite design. A testament to the brand’s dedication to innovation, the Calibre 185 is more than just a watch—it’s a work of art that showcases the very best of Swiss watchmaking. For more information, please check out the specially made website made by Jaeger-LeCoultre.
Technical Specifications
Model: Reverso Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185
Case material: White gold
Case dimensions: 51.2 x 31 mm
Thickness: 15.15 mm
Movement: Manually wound Jaeger-LeCoultre Calibre 185
Functions
Face 1: Hour – Minute, Tourbillon (indicating the Second), Instantaneous Perpetual Calendar, Grande Date, Day, Month, Leap Year, Night & Day
Face 2: Jumping Digital Hour, Minute, Minute Repeater (with system avoiding dead time)
Face 3: Northern Hemisphere Moon Phase, Draconic Lunar Cycle (height of the moon), Anomalistic Lunar Cycle (apogee and perigee), Month, Year
Face 4: Southern Hemisphere Moon Phase
Power reserve: 50 hours
Water resistance: 30 meters
Strap: Blue alligator
Reference: Q7103420
Limited edition: 10 pieces
