The Original! Reversible! Luxury Sport Watch!

Three new versions of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s legendary Reverso arrive just in time for the resurgence of this unsung icon of sport-watch history.

-  CAM WOLF

IN 1930, SWISS businessman César de Trey was attending a polo match in India, when he discovered that players' watches were being destroyed during the games. As the story goes, de Trey returned home and challenged the Swiss horologist Jacques-David LeCoultre to produce a sturdier timepiece, one that could stand up to the rigors of polo. This sparked the novel idea to create a watch case that could swivel in order to protect its most delicate parts, and, in 1931, the first Reverso was produced. While it eventually achieved a cultlike status, the Reverso never reached the hype and obsessive collector base that a watch with its credentials should.

Now, a trio of new Reversos coming out this year brings new attention to this overlooked icon.

For many, myself included, the Reverso is already an all-time favorite. Bulkier sport watches designed for racing and diving seem ordinary by comparison-the Reverso, after all, is the original luxury sport watch.