The timepieces, introduced at the Concours of Elegance at Hampton Court Palace, feature Lange’s Zero-Reset function and will be produced in limited editions.
Today, A. Lange & Söhne unveiled two new watches at the Concours of Elegance at Hampton Court Palace. The Glashütte, Germany-based brand unveiled a version of the Richard Lange Jumping Seconds in white gold with a pink-gold dial, and a platinum 1815 tourbillon with a black enamel dial. The watches will be available in a limited series of 100 and 50 pieces, respectively.
Richard Lange Jumping Seconds
Incorporating a rich combination of metal colors, the new Richard Lange Jumping Seconds is the collection’s fourth model and the fourth Lange watch with a pink gold dial. “The ensemble of colours—the case in 750 white gold and the pink-gold dial with contrasting black markings—represents a distinguishing feature of the watch,” said Anthony de Haas, director of product development at A. Lange & Söhne. Of course, the watch’s beauty is not skin deep; its superlative mechanics underneath the dial are unparalleled.
The watch’s dial features three intersecting circles: one for the hours, one for the minutes and one for the seconds. Unusually, the seconds is the largest of the three, taking center stage above the hours on the lower left and the minutes on the lower right. This is not surprising in the context of this timepiece, though, because its seconds hand is the star of the show. Unlike the standard seconds hands of mechanical watches that advance in a smooth motion, the seconds hand on the Richard Lange Jumping Seconds timepieces moves forward by “jumping,” advancing from one second to the next instantaneously. Resetting the seconds hand is achieved by pulling the watch’s crown out—at that moment, the seconds hand instantly resets to zero. With this function, setting the time with an accuracy of one second is made possible.
Mechanical Mastery
“The Richard Lange Jumping Seconds pairs comprehensive precision with individual elegance,” de Haas said. “On the one hand, it offers superb rate accuracy as well as quick and precise settability; on the other, our watchmakers succeeded in integrating the complex mechanisms in a confined space, thus enabling a flat architecture of elegant proportions.”
Indeed, the watch’s proportions are not compromised by the complex movement. With a case diameter of 39.9 millimeters and a height of 10.6 millimeters, it sits comfortably on the wrist..
1815 Tourbillon
The new 1815 Tourbillon is the fifth tourbillon in the 1815 collection. The first 1815 tourbillon, introduced in 2014, “was designed with the most superior precision in mind,” according to the brand. Like the new Richard Lange Jumping Seconds, the 1815 Tourbillon is equipped with Lange’s Zero-Reset setting mechanism, allowing the time to be adjusted with one-second accuracy.
Honoring History
Lange’s 1815 collection takes its design inspiration from the famed pocket watches of the brand’s founder, Ferdinand Adolph Lange, and the collection’s name commemorates the year of his birth. Like Mr. Lange’s timepieces, the 1815 collection watches’ “dial arrangement is restrained yet intricate, featuring many of the design elements found on historic pocket watches,” according to the brand. “These include for example clearly legible Arabic numerals as well as the railway-track peripheral minute scale.”
While the 1815 collection’s design roots are firmly planted in tradition, “the 1815 Tourbillon is emblematic of our manufacture’s ambition to continuously evolve this tradition,” de Haas said. “Hence, our watchmakers took the tourbillon—invented 200 years ago with the goal of improving rate accuracy—to the next level, giving it a contemporary interpretation.”
All in the Details
The new watch is the fifth tourbillon in the 1815 collection, and the second made of platinum. Its deep black enamel dial provides a harmonious contrast to the rich tone of its platinum case. Like all A. Lange & Söhne timepieces, its movement is assembled at least twice to ensure timekeeping accuracy.
The 1815 collection represents “a tradition that never stands still,” according to A. Lange & Söhne. And it’s clear that the brand has never stood still: In the span of just 35 years, it has developed 75 in-house movements and shows no signs of slowing down.