As announced in the April 2007 issue of GMT, the inauguration of the Jaeger-LeCoultre Heritage Gallery took place on October 4th within the highly creative Manufacture based in Le Sentier, on the very spot where founder Antoine LeCoultre set up his first workshop in 1933.

It is no exaggeration to speak of a full-fledged museum, in light of the kind of collection on show in such a welldesigned environment. From the famous Duoplan watches (1925) to the revolutionary Reverso grande complication à tripytique (2006), along with the Atmos (1928), Memovox (1950), Futurematic (1953) or Polaris (1965) collections – as well as the pioneering Gyrotourbillon (2004) and an extraordinary collection of Reverso watches ranging from 1931 to the present day – Jaeger- LeCoultre unveils 500 technical marvels drawn from its private collection, which comprises twice that number. Spanning past, present and future, the scenography of the Gallery pays tribute to the pioneering spirit of the company founder. Through their layout, their complexity and their innovations, the showcases reflect the fundamental Jaeger-LeCoultre values and evoke the shape of a watch movement. Sheathed in glass and leather, these sculptural creations play on the concepts of verticality and transparency. Each towers two floors high, surrounding the concrete slab embedded between them. Such a monumental display concept involved major technical challenges, which were successfully met by the Italian museum showcase specialists who created those for the Louvre. Operational project manager Solange Busser emphasizes the osmosis between the objects exhibited and their setting, all of which radiate the same aura of technical sophistication: “In this world we have recreated, where design is as important as technology, the steel poles supporting the slab are mirrorpolished and reminiscent of a the construction of a watch.” During their initiatory journey through the 40 professions exercised within the Manufacture, amid a hushed and almost reverent atmosphere enhanced by dimmer regulated lighting, visitors will also discover a huge curved glass wall measuring 5.4 metres wide and 4.7 metres high. This transparent wall contains an extraordinary collection of watch movements (over 300 calibres, all developed in-house). Moreover, a dedicated temporary exhibition area will host several themes per year. All roads may lead to Rome, but only Le Sentier (meaning ‘path’ in French) leads to watchmaking Eden…