Jean d’Eve Watches

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Jean d’Eve is a Swiss watch company founded in 1888 by Mr. Charles Barbezat. The watches were first produced under the Le Phare brand name and were immediately recognized for their quality and innovation and received the highest awards at the Universal Exhibitions in Paris (in 1889 and 1900), Liege (in 1905) and at several other international and national exhibitions.

In 1905, Le Phare was so successful that the company, with now more than 200 employees, changed its name to Manufacture d’Horlogerie Le Phare.

In 1970, Le Phare was the second largest Swiss producer of chronographs. The brand Jean d’Eve was launched in 1981 and gained immediate success with exclusive up-market models such as Sectora, Up-Side-Down and Blue Marlin. In 1984, the name was joined with Le Phare and became Le Phare Jean d’Eve SA.

Jean d'Eve watch

The Jean d’Eve SECTORA series, famous worldwide for its exclusive double retrograde system, features a soft, rounded case design which perfectly expresses the outstanding craftsmanship and advanced technology involved. The timepiece became a collectible with its pioneering design of a 150˚ sector watch case, thus creating a unique way of displaying time and adding a new dimension to the history of contemporary watch making.

In the late 80’s, the Jean d’Eve timepieces were being sold in nearly 50 countries. On April 14, 1988, during the Basel fair, to celebrate its 100th anniversary and give a tribute to the founder, Jean d’Eve proudly introduced the “Samara” watch, which was equipped with a newly developed,  prolonged, power reserve system named “generator®”. With this watch Jean d’Eve revolutionized over 250 year of watch making history and obtained more than 20 international patents.

With continuous innovations, inventions and over 120 years experience in watch making, Jean d’Eve watch collections (including Samara 2, Felina, Sectora 2000, Airport Douglas, Up-Side-Down, Sectora Automatic, and Pacific II) have been selected as exhibits in the International Watch Museum located in La Chaux-de-Fonds to honor the technological savoir-faire and innovative capacity of the Jean d’Eve watchmakers.

Moreover, Jean d’Eve has developed a number of unique and patented watches such as Sectora, Quarta, Samara and Sectana. The image of the brand “The artistic interpretation of time” has been successfully established in the international market.

Thanks to a dynamic management and continuous innovation and creative design, Sectora II Automatic and Luna were launched in 2006, perpetuating the prestige linked to power reserve technology and 150˚ sector watch case design, earning strong acclaims from both renowned watch critics and collectors. In 2009, the Quarta Automatic was developed through overcoming a maze of technical challenges. The creative time display blends aesthetic with mechanical wizardry into a new art of time keeping that matches the brand’s culture and heritage.

Technology on movement and craftsmanship on watch making, the quintessential expression of the brand, is echoed in the “Tourbillon Classic” collection in 2011. With refined design and a tourbillon movement, Jean d’Eve confirms yet again its dedication to innovation and its ability in leaving its indelible mark on horological history.

In 2012, Jean d’Eve enhanced its exquisite and premium image by launching a prestige 18K gold “Classique 1888” collection to commemorate the founder’s achievements.

Since 1888, JDE has launched several special editions of its unique eminent collections. During the 2015 Basel Fair, it announced a special edition of the Sectora II Automatic Collection to celebrate its 125th anniversary to honor the founders.

Featured Timepieces

Official website: http://www.jeandeve.ch/en