Reverso
The reversible case born on the polo field
The Reverso arose from a practical problem: polo players kept shattering their watch crystals. The answer was a case that flips within its frame — and became the best-known Art Deco design in watchmaking.
The evolution of the Reverso
In 1930 the businessman César de Trey, in British India, was commissioned to develop a watch that could withstand polo. The reversible case design was patented in France in 1931.
The case slides on a rail and rotates 180 degrees, so the solid caseback faces outward. This surface early became a canvas for engraving, enamel painting, and crests.
After a period of low demand in the 1960s and 1970s, Jaeger-LeCoultre revived the line in the 1980s — initially with hand-wound movements from existing stock.
From the 1990s onward, the manufacture expanded the Reverso with Duoface models showing a second time zone on the back, along with tourbillons, minute repeaters, and gyrotourbillons.
- Case
- Rectangular, reversible on a rail
- Dial
- Art Deco, godron lines
- Caseback
- Engravable and enamellable
- Movement
- Hand-wound or automatic, form calibre
- Sizes
- From Duetto to Grande Taille
- Variants
- Classic, Tribute, Duoface, One
Key reference numbers at a glance
What to look for when buying
- 01
The flip mechanism must run cleanly and lock in without play — worn guide rails are a clear pricing factor.
- 02
Engravings on the back are personal and narrow the pool of buyers, even when executed to a high craft standard.
- 03
Larger cases (Grande Taille, Tribute) are more broadly sought on the market than small vintage formats.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso at Predeluxe
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