The world’s most complex chronograph – A. Lange & Söhne Triple Split – one that can measure additive and comparative times for as long as twelve hours, just got a brand new avatar. Following on from the 2018 Triple Split, this one comes with an 18-carat pink gold case, blue dial and is limited to 100 pieces.
Following on from the first copper blue aventurine-glass dial Saxonia Thin timepiece in 2018 (graced with a blue-red sparkling dial achieved with blue gold flux), A.lange & Söhne, presents the new Saxonia Thin ‘Black Gold Flux’ Ref. 211.087, just in time for the Holiday season.
Limited to 50 pieces, this special white gold limited edition features a solid-silver dial, coated with subtly shimmering black gold flux, making the new SAXONIA THIN an absolute pleasure to look at. What you see here is a solid silver dial disc evenly coated with black gold flux containing tiny copper spangles. The shimmer is achieved by heating and melting silica and copper oxide and by finally allowing the mixture to cool to achieve the right crystallisation (Ideally you want the copper to crystallize before the glass hardens). To attain a homogeneous surface, the aventurine must be cast onto the silver dial with extreme caution.
With slender hour and minute hands as well as applied baton-style markers, the dial of the SAXONIA THIN is reduced to displaying the time in hours and minutes. The narrow bezel of the round gold case gives the dial ample space and emphasises the unusual material. Thanks to the characteristic camber of the strap lugs, the elegant watch assures a snug fit on the wrist. With a case diameter of 40 millimetres, the two-hand watch is merely 6.2 millimetres high. A shiny black leather strap with prong buckle in 18-carat white gold beautifully complements the black dial.
Visible through sapphire crystal case back is a manually wound calibre L093.1, developed and crafted in-house. It is also the thinnest A. Lange & Söhne movement so far. Despite the compact size, the movement offers a power reserve of three days. Two-fold assembly and the artisanal finissage of the parts comply with the manufactory’s high standards.
Brand-typical quality hallmarks include the three-quarter plate with Glashütte ribbing as well as bevelled and polished chamfers. To achieve visual balance, the chamfer of the flat-polished end piece is manually finished to match the three quarter plate. The ratchet and crown wheels are decorated with solarisation and visibly integrated into the plate. Three screwed, manually polished gold chatons serve as bearings for the wheel train that transmits power from the mainspring barrel to the escapement. The freely oscillating screw balance beats at a frequency of 21,600 semi-oscillations an hour. It is located beneath the hand-engraved balance cock that carries the whiplash spring.
by @kari_watch
A. Lange & Sohne has just dropped a limited edition white gold ZEITWERK MINUTE REPEATER with a mysterious deep blue dial. First introduced in 2015, this is the only watch in the world that combines a mechanical jumping numerals display with a decimal minute repeater.
The Zeitwerk Minute Repeater features a totally new interpretation of the classic complication. To complement the “digital” display of the time, its striking mechanism sounds ten-minute intervals instead of quarter-hours with double strikes. As soon as you activate the striking mechanism with the repeater pusher at 10 o’clock, it sounds the time that is displayed on the dial.
In the words of the German Manufacture with the Zeitwerk Minute Repeater “One hears what one sees. And one sees what one hears.” Let’s break it down. For instance, at 9.52 the gong hammer on the left strikes the low-pitched gong nine times, once for every elapsed hour. Then, five double tones are struck for the elapsed ten-minute intervals, followed by the right-hand hammer with two high strikes, one for each elapsed minute.
In the development of the striking mechanism, Lange’s engineers relied on the basic principle of the jumping numerals mechanism with which the time is displayed by an hour ring and two minute discs. This configuration makes it possible to sample the number of strikes to be executed – separately for the hours, ten-minute intervals and minutes – directly on the snails that are connected to the mechanical display elements. At the same time, enlarged sampling surfaces enhance the reliability of the striking mechanism. This assures that the acoustic time always corresponds to the displayed time.
Aesthetically too, the watch is quite well balanced as the polished gongs and the black-polished gong hammers are subtly integrated in the design of the dial. Another interesting aspect is the pusher mechanism. Unlike a slide, which is common in most minute repeaters, the Zeitwerk Minute Repeater features a unique pusher mechanism to trigger the repeater. How does this help? Well, the absence of a large lateral opening in the case eliminates a source of acoustic disruption, which then results in better sound quality.
To achieve the best possible sound quality, the product developers carefully reconciled all relevant parameters such as the case, gong hammers, gongs and movement architecture with one another. The large white-gold case delivers a reverberant, warm sound. The gongs, patiently tuned by hand, generate pure, resonant tones in perfect harmony.
Another advantage here, and by no means do I plan on going diving with this piece, is that unlike a slide, a pusher can be sealed, which makes the water-resistance to as much as 3 bar. Coming to the jumping numeral mechanism – What would happen if the chiming is in action say for 30 seconds and the displays happen to change? Just for that, the numerals discs are prevented from incrementing until the repeater sequence has ended. This delay that can take up to 20 seconds also assures that the digitally displayed time and the acoustic time are always in sync. For the same reason, the crown cannot be pulled while the striking mechanism is active.
Along with having an exceptionally strong mainspring that handles the switching actions of the jumping numerals mechanism, just like all models of the Zeitwerk family, the Zeitwerk Minute Repeater also features a patented constant-force escapement.
The 44.2 millimetre white-gold case with a matching deployant sits on a blue hand-stitched leather strap and houses the manufacture calibre L043.5.
Since its inception, the Zeitwerk has come a long way and is a grail watch for many watch enthusiasts and collectors (including myself) across the globe. Baring the fact that is a magnificent horological innovation, the eccentricity of this Zeitwerk Minute Repeater is what makes it so desirable.
On March 4, 2020, A.Lange & Söhne and Watches Of Switzerland celebrated the grand opening of their new Sydney boutique at 14 Martin Place, Sydney.
The new 164 metre boutique is designed in line with A. Lange & Söhne’s new global boutique concept, which reflects the brand’s Saxon roots in a modern and cohesive manner and provides a luxurious space for clients to unwind as they admire some of the finest timepieces. It has been almost 26 years since the German luxury watch marque resurrected its 149-year reputation, and eight years since the first presence of A. Lange & Söhne timepieces in Australia. The exciting announcement of an Australian boutique naturally follows as testament to its unprecedented success with Australia’s exclusive partner and retailer, Watches of Switzerland.
Hosted by Mr. Eric van der Griend, Watches of Switzerland Chairman, Mr. Wilhelm Schmid, CEO of A. Lange & Söhne, Ms. Anne Schaal, Managing Director South-East Asia and Australia, and Mr. Robert Hoffmann, Master Watchmaker and Head-of-Zeitwerk department, distinguished guests were transported into a horological world, deeply inspired by what A. Lange & Söhne stands for: craftsmanship, authentic design and meticulous attention to detail. The design of the boutique draws upon qualities of a Lange timepiece: the carefully composed interplay of colours, materials and textures. Materials used in the boutique range from utilitarian steel to natural stone, reminiscent of the hues of the Ore Mountains in Saxony, Germany, where the manufactory is based. Guests were also awed by the visual treat of the precision-engineered “Wall of Parts” and the boutique’s exclusive selection of fine timepieces.
During the symbolic ribbon-cutting ceremony, A. Lange & Söhne’s CEO, Wilhelm Schmid, said, “I’m very glad to join you today to witness the opening of our very first Australian boutique, which marks an important milestone for A. Lange & Söhne. The number of knowledgeable watch enthusiasts and collectors in Australia is continuously growing, as is the demand for our timepieces. Therefore, Sydney is among the first sites where we implemented our new store design.”
Congratulations to A.Lange & Söhne and Watches of Switzerland on the opening of their first Australian boutique. For more information visit Watches Of Switzerland or www.alange-soehne.com
2019 marks the 25th anniversary of A.Lange and Söhne’s best-known timepiece: LANGE 1; which is why the manufactory is celebrating the anniversary of the award-winning watch with a “25th Anniversary” edition in white gold limited to 250 timepieces. Its special features include a deep-blue printed argenté dial with a recess, blue date numerals, a hinged cuvette with an engraving of Lange’s headquarters and a hand-engraved balance cock with blued lines.
The 24th of October 1994 is the most important date in A. Lange & Söhne’s recent history. It is the day on which company founder Walter Lange and his partner Günter Blümlein presented the first four new-era wristwatches at the Dresden Palace, including the LANGE 1. The asymmetric arrangement of its dial triggered discussions, and its technical facets – such as the outsize date and the twin mainspring barrel – were enthusiastically received.
In the beginning, every style-defining design is polarising. This is because it must overcome habitual expectations to unfold its aesthetic appeal. The LANGE 1 is a good example.
An outsize date and an asymmetric dial layout paired with a lavishly finished mechanical calibre – in the mid 1990s, this was deemed a provocation by many people. But the unusual design attracted considerable attention and made A. Lange & Söhne famous again overnight.
The historic event that put A. Lange & Söhne back on the map of international precision watchmaking in 1994 is recalled in the anniversary year of 2019 with a collection of different models in white gold that pay tribute to the key milestones of the LANGE 1 watch family. The hallmarks they share are an argenté-coloured dial in solid silver with printed deep-blue numerals and hour markers, blue date numerals, and a colour-coordinated blue alligator leather strap with a grey seam.
The LANGE 1 marks the kick-off of the “25th Anniversary” series: it has been crafted virtually unchanged since 1994. Its movement is what reflects its technical evolution. The manually wound calibre L121.1 introduced in 2015 includes a precisely jumping outsize date display and a freely oscillating Lange balance spring. Paired with a large cam-poised balance, it assures superb rate accuracy. The opulently finished movement – as was the case with the first LANGE 1 calibre L901.0 – features a twin mainspring barrel with a power reserve of 72 hours as well as typical Lange quality hallmarks. Noteworthy elements are the three-quarter plate made of untreated German silver, eight screwed gold chatons, and the hand-engraved balance cock. It exhibits a very special engraving: the outsize date with a “25” that symbolises the 25th anniversary. The manually executed lines of the new engraving pattern are blued for the first time and thus stand out with a particularly rich contrast.
The LANGE 1 “25th Anniversary”, limited to 250 watches, has another prominent feature: the engraved hinged cuvette crafted from solid white gold. The engraving depicts the Lange headquarters that date back to 1873, the names of Walter Lange and Günter Blümlein, and a relief engraving of the inscription “25 YEARS LANGE 1”.
Say hello to another technologically impressive introduction from manufacture A.Lange & Sohne. The agenda here is pretty straight: PRECISION. It was in the year 2014, in their 1815 Tourbillon, A.Lange & Söhne combined a stop-seconds mechanism for the tourbillon with a ZERO-RESET time-setting feature. Simply put, the mechanisms allowed the watch to be stopped and then set with one-second accuracy. Now, this precision timekeeping instrument has been introduced in an edition limited to 100 pieces with a white enamel dial. You heard that right – WHITE ENAMEL DIAL.
Aesthetically quite understated except of course till you get to the large aperture at 6 o’clock which reveals the one minute tourbillon, suspended beneath a black polished bridge. The visual appeal is the icing on the cake really; with the focus being more on the actual mechanism. The tourbillon here doesn’t just offset the influence of gravity. Lange’s experts have engineered a logical refinement of the intricate filigreed complication by adding two patented mechanisms. First introduced in 1997 with the LANGEMATIK model, the ZERO-RESET mechanism interacts with the stop-seconds mechanism for the tourbillon – patented in 2008 – to assure one-second accuracy when stopping and setting the timepiece.
The lavishly finished manufacture calibre L102.1 which comprises of 262 parts, is crafted to the most exacting Lange quality standards and can be admired through the sapphire-crystal caseback. The exquisite movement decoration is crowned by a diamond end stone in a screwed gold chaton on the fourth-wheel bridge, which is adorned with a freehand engraving. The plates and bridges are made of untreated German silver.
Finally the highlight: That beautiful white Enamel Dial. According to A.Lange & Söhne some 30 manual processes are required to craft each dial. The 39.5-millimetre platinum cases are consecutively numbered from 001/100 to 100/100 and constitute an appealing frame for the perfectly crafted white enamel dial. The quest for historic authenticity stands out in details such as the separately printed and red-fired number 12. Blued-steel hands, Arabic numerals and a railway-track minute scale represent the classic personality synonymous with legendary nineteenth- and twentieth-century pocket watches.
The 1815 TOURBILLON is equipped with a black hand-stitched alligator leather strap secured with a solid-platinum deployant buckle.