Jaeger-LeCoultre launches the Master Ultra Thin Squelette collection
September 29, 2015: Jaeger-LeCoultre’s new Master Ultra Thin Squelette collection, comprising four watches, have become the cause of quite a few admiring gazes. The collection follows in the wake of the Hybris Artistica collection, embodying the inventiveness and alliance of 180 fine skills safeguarded by Jaeger-LeCoultre under its roof.
Ultra-thin horology has been a longstanding tradition at Jaeger-LeCoultre since 1907. The manufacturer associated it with other arts: skeleton working, engraving, enamelling and gem-setting. Jaeger-LeCoultre installs the reliable Jaeger-LeCoultre Calibre 849ASQ mechanism to nurture the watch.
The hand-engraved bridges are finely chamfered in even the most unattainable corners to. The eye moves across a millimetre-accurate decor having called for extreme precision and dexterity, noting the fascinating light effects created by Haute Horlogerie finishes.
The Master Ultra Thin Squlette dial is divided into 12 zones, each delineated by hour-markers crafted in keeping with high watchmaking traditions. The Rare Handcrafts (Métiers Rares) featured on the front and back of the watch are the very essence of these models presented in four different interpretations. Each Master Ultra Thin Squelette watch represents seamless integration of design, watchmaking artistry and exceptional expertise.
Envisaging enamel to adorn the Master Ultra Thin Squelette watch represented a sizeable challenge, since the combination of this eminently delicate technique with the skeleton working of the movement – and all within an ultra-thin 3.6 mm thick case – is a challenge. The white or pink gold is first adorned with a guilloché motif that gives a distinctive rhythm to the overall aesthetic of the watch. The artisan then applies the enamel to the dial surface and proceeds to the successive firing operations that reveal the strongly pigmented deep blue shade for the white version, or a frosted chestnut brown to match the pink gold of the case. The back of the enamelled Master Ultra Thin Squelette watch provides a mirror image of the sequenced hour-zone design. These two models are issued in 100-piece limited series.
And then another model uses mother-of-pearl and diamonds! This choice of materials proves to be a judicious one when the watch is held in the palm of the hand, where the radiance is the guiding thread in the gem-set Master Ultra Thin Squelette. This principle begins with the light that plays across the watch components that are engraved or finished according to a palette of techniques creating subtle contrasts. Then comes the shimmering iridescence of mother-of-pearl. Each of the hour zones is adorned with natural white mother-of-pearl that is hand-engraved to texture this delicate material. Finally, the fire of the brilliant-cut diamonds on the bezel sets the crowning touch.
On its 38 mm-diameter case measuring just 4.7 millimetres thick, the slender caseband has been meticulously hand-engraved. Finally, the back of the watch provides an identical replica of the watch face. The hour zones are also adorned with engraved mother-of-pearl, forming a glowing ring around the skeleton movement visible through the sapphire crystal. The Master Ultra Thin Squelette gem-set version comes in a graphic white gold or a warm pink gold version. Each model is issued in a 100-piece limited series.
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