Monochrome Monday: Previewing the Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar with Meteorite Dial


Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite dialThe Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar isn’t technically a new watch in the brand’s catalog, having first appeared at the 2013 SIHH watch fair. It has a very classical display and a very restrained design. So, how to bring new attention to an already known model and add some freshness? By introducing new dials! And the dials that Jaeger-LeCoultre chose are pretty interesting indeed. Here is a look at the Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite dial, which makes its official debut at SIHH 2015, courtesy of the team at Monochrome Watches.

The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar is an appealing but very classical dress watch, with its round case, slim profile and extremely balanced design. Everything here is made to be discreet, elegant and efficient. It brings back an old layout, used in the 1950s and 1960s, which display a complete calendar in a very specific way: date on the external part of the dial (indicated by a hand), day and month discreetly displayed in apertures at 12 o’clock for high legibility, and moon-phases at 6 o’clock. Clear and practical, this complete calendar gives all the required indications. Just keep in mind that it is a simple calendar, not a perpetual or annual calendar, that won’t take into account whether a month has 30 or 31 days (nor will it compensate for the 28 days of February or the leap years). Thus, it will require a correction every two months. However, it remains a very practical complication at a reasonable price level.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite dial - white

What makes the new 2015 models of this watch interesting are those new dials, which are made of a rather unusual material: meteorite, a rare and extremely old material. Meteorite has a unique appeal due to its origins – million-years-old, non-terrestrial stones sourced from falling stars – and due to its very specific crystalline structure. The one used for the Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite comes from an asteroid belt located between Mars and Jupiter and was collected somewhere in Sweden. Once prepared, this stone has to be cut in thin plates to create dials – do keep in mind that meteorite is both extremely hard and fragile to prepare – and then polished to reveal its structure, which is unique to each dial. Depending on the edition, it presents a light gray or anthracite color. On top of these dials are applied silvery or gilded indexes, which match the hands.

 

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite dial - white dial CU

The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite comes in an elegant, 39-mm case made of stainless steel or 18k rose gold, fully mirror-polished and reasonably thin – 10.6 mm. It has two sapphire crystals, including one on the back to admire the movement, Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Calibre 866. It is a self-winding engine, with 43 hours of power reserve, made in-house. It has a clean and pleasant finish, with Geneva stripes, blued screws, beveled angles and a gold insert on the rotor.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite dial - gray

The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite is a nice addition to the Master catalog, using a rare material found on only a few other watches, including versions of the Rolex Daytona and Omega Speedmaster. Prices will be officially released during SIHH 2015, but the standard versions, with silvery dial in stainless steel or 18k rose gold are priced at, respectively, 8,800 euros and 19,700 euros. With the addition of a meteorite dial, we would expect that prices would come in around 10,500 euros in steel and 21,500 euros in 18k gold.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Calendar Meteorite dials - pair
Leave a Reply