A. Lange & Söhne’s 1815 collection, which derives its name from the year of F.A. Lange’s birth, provides the appropriate platform for the new watch, which is limited to (again, appropriately) 200 pieces worldwide, all sold through A. Lange & Söhne boutiques. And the fact that the company chose the 1815 model’s clean, elegant design — just an hours and minutes display, along with small seconds on a subdial at 6 o’clock, a layout reminiscent of those on Lange’s historic pocketwatches — pays tribute to the simplicity of the founder’s earliest horological achievements, before he attained international renown with chronographs, remontoirs, jumping-seconds models and repeaters.
The A. Lange & Sohne 1815 “200th Anniversary F.A. Lange” comes in a 40-mm-diameter platinum case and a black dial made of solid silver. The hands are in rhodiumed gold, and the watch has a sapphire crystal in the front and back. Whereas the front crystal showcases the dial’s classical simplicity, the view through the caseback offers a glimpse into the complex artistry of traditional Saxon watchmaking, as pioneered by Ferninand Adolph Lange.
The watch’s manufacture movement, manual-wind Caliber L051.1, bears all the hallmarks of the classical Glashütte horological style, including the three-quarter plate made of untreated German silver, a hand-engraved balance cock, classical screw balance, whiplash spring, gold chatons to secure the bearing jewels, and thermally blued screws. The three-quarter plate, in particular, is a living symbol of F.A. Lange’s contributions to German watchmaking, invented in its current form in 1864 for the purpose of better stabilizing the overall movement.
The A. Lange & Sohne 1815 “200th Anniversary F.A. Lange” is delivered on a had-stitched black alligator leather strap with a platinum pronged buckle. Each watch bears an engraved series number (001 through 200) on the caseback. It will be priced at $33,500. Scroll down for more specs on the watch.
Reference: 236.049
Movement: Lange manufacture Caliber L051.1; manually wound, decorated and assembled by hand; precision-adjusted in five positions; plates and bridges made of untreated German silver; balance cock engraved by hand; 188 parts; 23 jewels; lever escapement; shock-resistant screw balance; Nivarox balance spring with a frequency 21,600 vph; precision beat-adjustment system with lateral setscrew and whiplash spring; 55-hour power reserve; 30.6 mm in diameter, 4.6 mm thick
Functions: Hours, minutes, subsidiary seconds with stop-seconds function
Dial: Solid black, silver, with rhodiumed gold hands
Case and strap: platinum case, 40 mm in diameter, 8.8 mm thick; sapphire crystal (Mohs hardness = 9) front and back; on black hand-stitched alligator strap with platinum prong buckle
It’s a beautiful watch and a nice design and size: but if it’s manual wind, why not a modern (larger) crown, to match the modern (40mm) watch size? For that matter, the watch could be a big seller with that simple and elegant design and size, even if done in stainless steel for the case, and without the solid silver dial and overly decorated movement.
But I suppose it will be exclusive at that price.