• Brand and Country of Manufacture - Jaeger LeCoultre, Switzerland
• Year - 1950's
• Serial - 689695
• Model - Unkown
• Movement & caliber -  Manual 480/CW 
• Case diameter - 31.5mm

A 10k gold filled Jaeger LeCoultre watch. This funky and quite rare piece was part of the collection of Jaeger LeCoultre model watches sent to the US market for design and assembly. This led to a much wider variety, more ornate and quite unique looking offering of watches in the US market under the LeCoultre brand name. This being a wonderful example of that independence.

The relationship that was forged between JLC and Longines-Wittnauer to sell and distribution JLC watches, under the "LeCoultre" brand in the U.S. The raw LeCoultre movements would be imported into the U.S. under the pre-existing VXN import code registered to Vacheron, as is stamped onto this movement. Once in the U.S., The Longines-Wittnauer company would arrange for U.S. case makers such as Star, Apex, Wadsworth, Schwab & Wuischpard, to produce the cases and designs to JLC's specifications. The watches were then assembled and timed and distributed through the Longines-Wittnauer/Vacheron dealer network in the U.S. under the LeCoultre name. It was not just limited to just watches as other items such as house keys, other novelty items as well clocks fitted with LeCoultre movements we manufactured. They were probably one of the most innovative

Although many of the U.S.-market LeCoultre watches were identical to their Swiss JLC counterparts, there were other new LeCoultre models produced solely for the U.S. In general, the unique U.S. market LeCoultre case styles tended to be much less conservative and more "trendy" than the JLC Swiss-market watches.

This watch is presented in superb, untouched condition. The very rare brown painted dial with gilt printing and applied metal makers is a no-lume version, as was more common with more dress designed pieces. There is spidering to the dial, and a small loss of paint to the subsidiary seconds, but still has a wonderful color and character. This dial is signed "SWISS" just below the six o'clock plot marker.

The movement inside this watch is manual wind caliber 480/CW. This is a 17 jewels caliber that was also used for the cleverly engineered mystery watches of the era, a unique collaboration between LeCoultre and Vacheron Constantin.

The watch dates to the early 1950’s and is a real talking point. With the very unusual and large faceted bezel surrounding the original mineral glass crystal the horn lugs almost seem to float off the bezel due to the space afforded from them and the bezel. It is rare to find such an interesting looking watch, and in such original condition. Although the case diameter does measure that wide, the lugs and design means it wears beautifully on the wrist.