The invention of the Jaeger-LeCoultre 101 caliber was a pivotal event in the history of watchmaking. To this day, the caliber created in 1929 has held onto its title as the world's smallest mechanical movement, and it is one of the oldest still in continuous production.
At the beginning of the 20th century, when watchmakers did not have the modern technologies that are now at our disposal to reduce the size of parts and calculate their interaction, this movement was genuinely revolutionary in the world of micromechanics. The caliber was 14 mm long, less than 5 mm in width, and 3.4 mm thick, weighing 1 gram, and its components were spread over two planes, with the escapement set on one, and the barrel and cogs on the other.
This summer, Jaeger-LeCoultre shows that miniaturization is still in fashion and is releasing two high-jewelry novelties that house the 101/4 caliber. The improved movement is just 0.2 cm³. Notwithstanding its tiny volume, the number of parts in the caliber with a 33-hour power reserve has increased from 78 to 98.
The fourth-generation 101 caliber is housed in two watches that have struck a perfect balance, where jewelry meets watchmaking: the Snowdrop bracelet with 904 diamonds and the asymmetric Bangle watch with 996 precious stones. In the Snowdrop watch, the diamond setting alone took Jaeger-LeCoultre's jewelry artisans more than 130 hours, with the stones weighing a total of 20.9 carats. Pear-cut and brilliant-cut diamonds are used in both pieces, applied using two different setting techniques. In the Bangle watch, the stones are literally submerged in gold, using the pave setting technique on the two bands of gold around the side of the bracelet, while the prong setting is used for the middle, which allows more light to play on the surface of the stones.
There are many famous fans of the tiny Jaeger-LeCoultre 101 movement: from Elizabeth II, who wore a Jaeger-LeCoultre watch on her coronation in 1953, presented to her by French President Alfred Lebrun when she was still a princess, to Sarah Jessica Parker, who wore the 101 Art Deco to the BAFTA Awards in 2013. The new models are bound to attract a few more big names looking to enrich their personal collections.