A Fresh Look at the Legacy of A. Lange & Söhne

Rediscovering our roots is not only an opportunity to delve into the past, it also gives us an insight into today's aspirations. The new trio of watches in the “Homage to F. A. Lange” Anniversary Edition by A. Lange & Söhne clearly shows that the Saxon watchmaker is well-rooted in the present.

A. Lange & Söhne have payed tribute to history on more than one occasion. The company launched the “Homage to F. A. Lange” anniversary collection in 2010, marking the 165th anniversary since the company was first founded by Ferdinand Adolph Lange in Glashütte as well as the 20th anniversary of the brand’s revival.

It consisted of three outstanding pieces: Tourbograph Pour le Merite, Lange 1 Tourbillon and 1815 Moonphase. The element that brought them all together was the Honeygold shade of the manufacture's proprietary patented gold alloy.

Now, 10 years later, A. Lange & Söhne have come back with another trio of innovative Honeygold watches, arranged in the following hierarchy: from the "entry-level" 1815 Thin Honeygold to the complicated 1815 Rattrapante Honeygold and the highly complicated Tourbograph Perpetual Honeygold. Besides the manufacture's proprietary material, the new timepieces have another thing in common — their movements have been specially decorated with festive embellishments to mark the occasion.

The 1815 Thin Honeygold was released in a limited edition of 175 pieces for the anniversary. Not only is it aesthetically similar to the Saxonia Thin model (the relative simplicity of the dial’s design, and the case which is only 6.3 mm thick), it also shares technical similarities, as both models have been built around the same L093.1 manufacture caliber.

The 2.9 mm thick hand-wound movement consists of 167 parts. To mark the anniversary, it has been given a special grainy textured finishing, and the balance cock has been hand-engraved. The dial is embellished in exquisite enamel.

The 1815 Rattrapante Honeygold is the sixth rattrapante chronograph (also referred to as split-seconds chronographs) by A. Lange & Söhne, released in a limited edition series of 100 pieces.

The House combined the Honeygold case with an unusual black dial for the first time, which is traditionally made of silver. The 41.2 mm diameter case accomodates the L101.1 movement which was used in the 1815 Rattrapante Perpetual Calendar, but this time all the attention has been diverted to the chronograph.

The Tourbograph Perpetual Honeygold now combines five complications: a rattrapante chronograph has been used again, but this time it is accompanied by a tourbillon, a fusée-and-chain transmission, a perpetual calendar and a moon-phase display. At the heart of the model is its lavishly decorated Calibre L133.1 — a true feat of engineering with 684 parts. The number of editions released has decreased relative to the number of complications, with only 50 timepieces available.