Jaeger-LeCoultre watches: beautiful celestial timepieces

By Rebecca Doulton

Astronomy has inspired many Jaeger-LeCoultre watches and the Rendez-Vous collection of ladies' watches is no exception. First launched in 2012, the Rendez-Vous watch was designed exclusively for women and has undergone some fantastic transformations, from high jewellery pieces to complicated tourbillons, and even a delicate minute repeater decorated with ivy leaves.

This year, Jaeger-LeCoultre has made a date with the biggest star of them all for its Rendez-Vous Celestial watch. The fiery orb of the Sun, believed to be older than four billion years, is recreated here with a Bordeaux aventurine stone; depending on the light, the dial of the watch shimmers in vibrant red, mineral ochre and orange shades.

The hour and minutes - from 9 to 3 o'clock - are set on a beautiful guilloché crescent shape, reminiscent of ruffled curtains or a wavy sea. Below the time lies an elliptical disc featuring the 12 Zodiac signs and various constellations hand-painted on the sparkling aventurine dial. The disc rotates in time to the heavens thanks to an annual calendar complication housed in the JLC automatic movement.

A warm 37.50mm rose gold case set with 139 brilliant-cut diamonds on the bezel and two inverted diamonds on the crowns illuminate the heaven-inspired show on the dial. By means of the second crown, the star that pops up on the dial at around 7 o'clock can be moved to the hour of your choice as a reminder of your next important rendezvous.

Moonstruck would be a nice way of describing this romantic interpretation of the Moon's phases in the new Jaeger-LeCoultre Rendez-Vous Moon watch. Occupying a prominent position on the dial, the mother-of-pearl Moon completes its monthly cycle from full, new, waxing, gibbous, first quarter to first crescent. Surrounding the Moon is a nocturnal sky dotted with constellations, sprinkled with cabochons to represent the stars. The wavy guilloché pattern of the sky is hand-engraved and then coated with a blue lacquer to create a sensation of depth.

The Rendez-Vous Moon watch comes in either a 36 or 39mm white gold case and houses the automatic JLC calibre 935. Like the Sun watch, the Moon features the little star-shaped indicator for your secret rendezvous and is set with 166 brilliant-cut diamonds on the bezel and dial of the smaller model, and 208 on the larger model. With these two new Jaeger-LeCoultre watches, who says you can't have the Sun and the Moon?

Read more about Jaeger-LeCoultre on our list of top 10 women's watches

Jaeger-LeCoultre Rendez-Vous Moon watch in mother-of-pearl. The sky is dotted with constellations and sprinkled with cabochons.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Rendez-Vous Moon is presented in a white gold case in either a 36mm or 39mm diameter. The 36mm case is lit up with 166 brilliant-cut diamonds on the bezel, the 39mm version features 208 brilliant-cut diamonds and comes on a navy blue satin strap.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Rendez-Vous Celestial watch recreates the fire of the Sun with a dial made from Bordeaux-coloured aventurine, a stone that changes colour depending on the light. Just below the hour crescent is an elliptical disc featuring the 12 Zodiac signs and various constellations hand-painted on the sparkling aventurine stone.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Rendez-Vous Moon keeps the cycles of the Moon accurate for 972 years thanks to the Moon-phase complication in the automatic JLC movement.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Rendez-Vous Celestial watch keeps the heavens in motion thanks to an annual calendar complication in its automatic JLC movement. The 37.5mm rose gold case is set with 139 brilliant-cut diamonds and two inverted diamonds in the crowns.
Celebrating astronomy this year, Jaeger-LeCoultre watches has made a date with the biggest star of them all for its Rendez-Vous Celestial, which captures the fiery light of the Sun, and with the soft glow of the Moon with the Rendez-Vous Moon.