A. Lange & Söhne celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Lange 1 with a series of 10 timepieces.
The German brand has been releasing a model each month since January, and will continue until Oct 24, keeping everyone in anticipation about what's coming next.
On that date back in 1994, co-founders Walter Lange and Günter Blümlein unveiled the brand's first four wristwatches at Dresden Palace, in Saxony, Germany.
Balance cock with an engraving of the outsize date with 25 to symbolise the anniversary. A Lange & Sohne
The launch marked a new era for the company, coming almost four years after its registration on Dec 7, 1990, which was exactly 145 years after Ferdinand Adolph Lange founded a watchmaking studio in Glashütte, a town near Dresden.
The family business was forced to close its doors after World War II due to expropriation. But in 1990, following Germany's reunification, fourth-generation Walter Lange revived A. Lange & Söhne. Its debut timepiece, the Lange 1, became an icon.
In Walter Lange's memoirs, The Revival Of Time, he noted that Lange 1's novel design made it among the most exotic luxury watches, according to colleagues and journalists attending the timepiece's launch at Dresden Palace.
It featured an off-centre hour display, subsidiary seconds, power reserve display and a uniquely large date display. The asymmetric arrangement of the dial and the striking outsize date and lavishly-finished mechanical movement put the German watchmaker back on the haute horlogerie map.
The jubilee year kicked off in January with the presentation of the Lange 1 "25th Anniversary" edition at SIHH 2019, in Geneva. The white gold commemorative watches share the hallmark argenté-coloured dial in solid silver with printed deep-blue numerals and hour markers, as well as blue date numerals.
Limited to 250 pieces, the first anniversary model is housed in a 38.5mm case, whose hinged cuvette boasts engravings of Lange's historic headquarters, the names of Walter Lange and Günter Blümlein, as well as the inscription 25 JAHRE and LANGE 1.
Lange 1 '25th Anniversary' edition with engraved hinged cuvette. A Lange & Sohne
Symbolising the anniversary, the outsize date with a "25" is engraved on the balance cock, revealed by the sapphire crystal on the caseback. 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 hand-engraved balance cock is also featured in the second and third anniversary editions, Grand Lange 1 Moon Phase, and Little Lange 1 "25th Anniversary", launched in February and March. Only 25 each are available to mark the milestone.
The Little Lange 1 and Grand Lange 1 Moon Phase have been members of the watch family since 1998 and 2014.
With a diameter of 36.8mm, the Little Lange 1 is similar to the original in terms of design and functionality. Their anniversary editions are powered by the same manually-wound movement, which provides a 72-hour power reserve.
Driven by another in-house manufactured movement, the 41mm Grand Lange 1 Moon Phase offers the same three-day power reserve while promising a correct moon phase display for 122.6 years.
The jubilee version has been redesigned with engravings of six stars and numerous dots creating a starry backdrop for the inlaid golden moon, on the lunar disc located at the top of the main dial with an hour and minute display.
The release of each 25th anniversary model is scheduled on the 24th and 25th of each month. More complicated models are expected to join the celebrations, with the Lange 1 Tourbillon Perpetual Calendar the most recent addition.
