Jaeger-LeCoultre brings the fifth capsule of The Collectibles to New York City from 5 to 23 February 2026, presenting eight authenticated and restored Reverso watches from 1931 to 1937 at 701 Madison Avenue. It is a quiet reminder that good design does not age so much as it settles.
The Collectibles is the Manufacture’s in-house program that sources, restores and offers museum-grade pieces spanning the mid-1920s to early 1970s. A dedicated restoration workshop of ten watchmakers services movements, rebuilds components and draws on historical parts, preserving original character and patina. Each watch is delivered with an extract from the archives and a complimentary copy of The Collectibles book, plus a new handmade leather strap unless a metal bracelet is present.
This capsule focuses on the Reverso’s first decade – the period that set its language of sliding cradle, gadroons and spare Art Deco geometry. A Reverso 1931 appears with a black dial, once described as “the dial of the future” when silver was the norm, its railroad minutes and trapezoidal indexes foreshadowing today’s Tribute models.
Technical milestones are present. A two-tone steel and 9K yellow gold Reverso from 1936 houses Calibre 410, the first in-house movement made for the model, introduced in 1933 with small seconds at six. Earlier on, Jaeger-LeCoultre had turned to Tavannes calibres 063 and 064 for men’s pieces and 050 and 051 for ladies – a pragmatic bridge to get the design on wrists. Completing the men’s trio, a 1937 Reverso with Small Seconds carries Calibre 413 and a “Jaeger-LeCoultre” dial signature that neatly timestamps the 1937 merger.
The women’s pieces show early range. A Reverso 1931 Dame in white and yellow gold 18k replaces the minute track with corner brackets, an idea echoed in today’s Reverso One. Another Dame bears a Double Signature and heated blue hands. There is also a rare 1931 Reverso fitted with a cordonnet bracelet rendered in chrome, and two further 1931 Dame models with geometric brackets and black or brown calfskin straps – black once being the strikingly modern choice.
For collectors, the appeal is not only provenance but construction. The reversible case remains a model of purposeful engineering, and the workshop’s light touch respects age rather than erasing it. Reservations aside about nostalgia as a business model, this is heritage treated as a living practice, not a showroom set.
The watches are available worldwide via jaeger-lecoultre.com starting 5 February, and at the New York flagship during the exhibition. The Collectibles book is available online and in boutiques.
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