The German watch brand A. Lange & Söhne was established in 1845 by Ferdinand Adolph Lange. He hired apprentices and trained them to create watches according to his standards. His watches gained recognition and his brand became synonymous to fine German watchmaking. Throughout the course of his career, Ferdinand was able to patent a number of his inventions, one of which was a stoppable jumping seconds. In 1873, he handed over his business to his sons, and they, in turn, handed it down to their sons.
Sometime in the 1940s, the watch brand went on an involuntary hiatus and stayed “dormant” for over forty years. In 1990, the great grandson of Ferdinand A. Lange, Walter Lange, revived the brand and revived Glashütte as a watchmaking city.
One of the current collections in today’s A. Lange & Söhne brand is called the 1815 collection. It is a tribute to the original founder of the company, as it indicates his birth year. The design of this collection is characterised by traditional style elements, giving the collection a timeless, classic design.
Last year, Walter passed away. To honour the memory of the man who revived the brand, A. Lange & Söhne produced a watch to pay proper tribute to him: the 1815 “Homage to Walter Lange”. This timepiece features the stoppable jumping seconds that Ferdinand A. Lange invented some 150 years ago. The small seconds hand in the sub dial at 6 o’clock maps the frequency of 21,600 semi-oscillations per hour by performing six small steps as it advances from marker to marker. The blued sweep seconds hand at the center performs precise jumps from second to second and can be allowed to run continuously or immobilised if needed. A pusher at 2 o’clock starts and stops the hand. It is a useful tool for measuring quick times, such as calculating your heart rate.
Inside the 40.5 mm case beats the Lange manufacture calibre L1924, a manual winding movement that oscillates at 21,600 semi-oscillations per hour, and has a 60-hour power reserve. The watch comes in either a yellow gold, white gold, or pink gold case. All three versions come with a solid silver dial, blued steel hands, and hand-stitched alligator leather straps.
The yellow gold version will have 27 executions, the white gold version will have 145 examples, and the pink gold version will be limited to 90 pieces.
