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The Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater by Jaeger-LeCoultre [Video]

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September 2014


This first minute repeater to make its entrance to a feminine Jaeger-LeCoultre collection results from ten years of development and is instilled with the age-old wisdom of the preciously preserved skills nurtured within the Manufacture Jaeger-LeCoultre.

A New Calibre
As a creation in its own right, the Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater watch required the development of a new Calibre 942A. This extremely accurate automatic movement beats at a cadence of 28,800 vibrations per hour and has a 43-hour power reserve.
By way of reminder, only the exceptional Hybris Mechanica 11 – Master Ultra Thin Minute Repeater Flying Tourbillon piece – can claim to associate this device with a minute repeater function.

Calibre 942A was designed to adapt to a small 39 mm case which accommodates what is generally regarded as the supreme horological complication. The interpretation provided by the Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater combines precision with remarkable functionality, ensuring that this rendez-vous is a source of genuine pleasure.

Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater by Jaeger-LeCoultre
Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater by Jaeger-LeCoultre

Tradition
In line with the governing philosophy of the Grande Maison, each skill successively devoted to crafting the dial or case of the Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater is executed in the appropriate manner.
On the white gold dial – first adorned with a sunburst guilloché motif – the master enameller delicately uses a brush to apply pigments in the form of metal oxides. Several firings in an oven at extreme temperatures are required in order to reveal the delicate blue that perfectly reproduces the night sky above the Vallée de Joux, bathed in moonlight.

The Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater by Jaeger-LeCoultre The Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater by Jaeger-LeCoultre

Feminine Sound
On the Hybris Mechanica Grande Sonnerie watch, traditional hammers have been replaced by trebuchet hammers in order to ensure optimal transmission of energy to the gongs. In its turn, the Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater watch is fitted with two patented trebuchet hammers which strike two crystal gongs connected to the sapphire crystal harder and just once, producing a loudspeaker effect.

In addition, the new Rendez-Vous is also equipped with a silent regulator to reduce any peripheral sound disturbance of the mechanism. Only the sound of the minute repeater can be heard.
It has been re-worked by a master watchmaker with a musical ear who has modified its mechanical oscillations in order to produce a lower decibel sound. Warmer, richer, sweeter, inherently feminine – the melody played by the Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater stirs the heartstrings and the ear in unison. This is a delicate balancing act that calls for highly refined expertise in the field of acoustic theory as well as finely tuned sensitivity.

The dial features a special blue, aiming to reproduce the bathed in moonlight night sky above the Vallée de Joux
The dial features a special blue, aiming to reproduce the bathed in moonlight night sky above the Vallée de Joux

An Ingenious Pushbutton
In order to keep the watch as slim as possible while maintaining a pure, smooth aesthetic line, the Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater is operated by a single pushbutton replacing the traditional repeater slide system. A major improvement compared to classic minute repeaters is that this model is equipped with a security system which ensures that even if the pushbutton is pressed again while the minute repeater is already in action, the mechanism does not start working again – thereby preventing any damage to the movement.

Gemsetting Variations
Two rows of diamonds on the bezel and pushpiece echo this precious jewellery craftsmanship. In keeping with the signature codes of the Rendez-Vous collection, this classic, refined gem-setting continues on the lugs, the sides of the case and right the way to the crown which is also decorated like some delicate jewel, making a total of 548 diamonds (including the 255 diamonds adorning the dial).
The Rendez-Vous Ivy Minute Repeater is made of 18-carat white gold. Presented on a satin bracelet, it is water resistant to 30 metres and meets all the exacting requirements that make the Grande Maison a major exponent of the art of Fine Watchmaking and Grande Complication horology.

Source: Jaeger-LeCoultre