Pre SIHH 2019: A. Lange & Söhne Lange 1 “25th Anniversary”
10 January 2019The 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.
The manufacture celebrates the anniversary of the award-winning LANGE 1 with a “25th Anniversary” edition with a 38.5mm case 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 LANGE 1 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 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”.
