Jaeger-LeCoultre Showcases the New Master Grande Tradition Calibre 948 with a Green Enamel Dial

Ancient civilizations (take Babylonians, Greeks, Egyptians, and Chinese) often constructed observatories not just to see the sky, but also to keep time. Many early techniques of timekeeping relied on the sun's journey across the sky, the moon's phases, and the positions of stars and planets. As technology advanced, astronomical timepieces were developed. These instruments didn't just tell time, but also displayed the positions of the sun, the moon, and, sometimes, planets. Among the watches that are inspired by this astronomical foundation of timekeeping is the just-launched Master Grande Tradition Calibre 948 (Ref.Q52824E1), a 20-piece limited-edition worldtimer tourbillon that combines a great movement with exquisite craftsmanship. 

This new variant follows Ref. Q52834E1 that the Maison released at the Watches and Wonders 2022. Limited to 20 pieces, the 2022 watch came in a 43 mm white gold case and had a blue translucent lacquer over a wavy guilloche pattern, along with a domed skeleton structure decorated with champlevé enamel. White gold was also incorporated into the lugs and the crown. 

The latest Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Grande Tradition Calibre 948 stands out for its one-of-a-kind worldtimer tourbillon movement. The calibre 948 now has minor variations, such as a new balance wheel, referred to as a Universal Tourbillon by the Grande Maison. It combines the tourbillon's regulator minute-by-minute spin with an orbital rotation around the dial every day. As a result, the flying tourbillon spins around the watch once every day, tracing the 24 hours and recreating the earth's rotation on its own axis. This daily revolution of the tourbillon (together with the central map and city ring) enables the watch to display time in all 24 time zones.

The world time display is simple and user-friendly. The 24-hour ring on the dial's periphery remains constant, allowing you to tell the time in all time zones as the map and city ring rotates. The crown is used to set the global time and minutes (for example, to align London with the current GMT time), and to adjust the wearer’s local time zone (by simply moving the hour hand in one-hour increments forwards or backwards). 

The Master Grande Tradition Calibre 948 dial combines exceptional handmade techniques to create a three-dimensional design. The map is based on a domed skeletonised structure generated by the longitude and latitude lines. This 25.5 mm openworked canvas features small painting and champlevé enamel. The map depicting the Northern Hemisphere is indeed made of champlevé enamel. The process involves carving the pattern into the structure. The hollow sections are subsequently filled with the enamel in numerous layers, each fired at high temperatures. The design is then finished with intricate hand-painted accents. 

This domed map is mounted on a base plate depicting the oceans in blue-green translucent lacquer with a wavy guilloche pattern. Each dial takes 70 hours of effort. The fixed hour ring around the revolving map contains applied numerals and hour markers. The minute track is laser-etched into a dark green lacquer ring. When a wearer arrives at a new location, the same crown sets the local time, which adjusts only the hour hand in one-hour increments forwards or backwards, letting the minutes and seconds continue running appropriately. The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Grande Tradition Calibre 948 has a 43 mm 18 ct pink gold Master Grande Tradition casing with a 48 hour power reserve. Its rounded bezel contrasts with the lugs' broad bevel and hollowed flanks. The watch is finished on a black alligator leather with a folding buckle.