First Look Jaeger-LeCoultre Adds Four New References to the Master Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar Collection

Jaeger-LeCoultre has a fascinating history of pushing the boundaries in watchmaking, crafting timepieces that captivates enthusiasts with its elegant timepieces. One of the brand’s iconic releases is the Master Ultra Thin collection, which pays tribute to the brand's heritage, drawing inspiration from a ultra thin pocket watch the brand made back in 1907, and within this collection, you'll find a range of elegant dress watches, from simple ones showing just the time and date to more intricate designs featuring moon phases, tourbillons, and perpetual calendars. 

We can all agree that mastering a perpetual calendar is no small feat; it's like wrangling a tiny mechanical brain that can automatically adapt to months of different lengths and leap years. Unlike a simple date display that needs to be manually fixed at the end of shorter months, a perpetual calendar keeps operating accurately until the year 2100, and even on centenary leap years, it operates smoothly without needing any manual adjustments. For the occasion of Watches And Wonders 2024, the brand added four different references to the Master Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar collection, and upped the power reserve significantly.  

Although the case size maintains the elegant dimensions of the original Master Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar, at 39mm in diameter and 9.2mm in thickness, its design has undergone subtle modernization. This includes revised proportions and slimmer, elongated lugs, enhancing comfort on wrists of all sizes. The dial is protected by a sapphire crystal, and the case back also boasts a sapphire crystal to enhance the watch aesthetics. Choose from pink gold with a midnight blue dial, pink gold with an eggshell dial, or indulge in the luxurious combination of pink gold with diamonds (60 diamonds ~ 0.85 carats) and an eggshell dial. Additionally, there's also a steel option featuring a striking silver sunray dial.

The dial comes in either gradient blue sunray, eggshell, or silver sunray depending on the case material. The design has undergone some modifications while preserving the symmetry and balance of the original layout. The applied hour markers have been elongated, and each facet of the Dauphine hands combine polished and brushed textures. The moon phase display sits at 12 o'clock, while the date disk is positioned at 3 o'clock, the month at 6 o'clock, and the day disk at 9 o'clock, with the rectangular year window neatly nestled between them. Positioned just above the hands at the dial's center, a small security zone indicator turns red to caution users against adjusting the time or calendar indications at a time that could potentially damage the delicate mechanism.

The automatic Caliber 868, is powering the 2024 Master Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar, crafted entirely in-house at Jaeger-LeCoultre. This caliber traces its lineage back to the renowned perpetual calendar movement introduced by the Manufacture in 2013. In line with the pursuit of technical excellence at the Manufacture, the latest iteration of Caliber 868 showcases advancements including a redesigned escapement and pallets. These modifications, with a slightly altered shape, effectively reduce friction, resulting in improved energy efficiency. Notably, this upgraded caliber boasts a robust power reserve of 70 hours.

All the pink gold variants with the steel variant come with a black alligator leather strap except the pink gold case with midnight blue dial comes with a blue alligator leather strap. The prices for the watches are EUR 25,700, which is equivalent to approximately AED 103,000 for the steel variant, EUR 36,700, approximately AED 146,500 for the rose gold model,  EUR 38,000, approximately AED 152,000 for the blue dial version, and EUR 39,000, approximately AED 156,000 for the rose gold model with diamonds.

For more information please visit JLC’s official website.